


An Entrapped Swan

by Kendrickhier



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/F, Time Travel, Unhappy Ending, appearances of Hook & Rumple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 07:14:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4951396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kendrickhier/pseuds/Kendrickhier
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma falls into the time portal with Hook and finds herself trapped in the past Enchanted Forest. They interrupt her parents meeting, which causes great alterations in the timeline, which they try to fix with Rumplestiltskin's help. When they get to the wedding of Prince James and Princess Abigail they help Snow escape with the ring, but Emma is captured by the Dark Knights and she's thrown at the mercy of the Evil Queen.</p><p>This story is set during the season 3B finale, makes use of some deleted scenes and canonical scenes, however differs in the way that Emma was not able to escape. What happens if Regina had managed to keep her trapped?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Enter the Queen

“Going somewhere?”

Ever since ‘the Evil Queen’ entered the ball, Emma could sense there was trouble up ahead. After all, Snow was supposed to be stealing the ring at that moment, and it wasn’t ever peaceful with those two in the same place. She had been feeling more confident during the dance, that perhaps they would be able to survive it without having to do anything to stand out, but Regina’s entrance alone made that feeling disappear. The fact that she was invited hadn’t eased any nerves either.

She had been right. Because right now, she was face to face with the Queen in person, surrounded by her guards, with her parents’ ring in possession. The guard she knocked down to save her mother’s life had escaped from Hook and alerted the others that she had aided her in her escape. _Just wonderful._

“Regina, I-“ But of course she wouldn’t be allowed to finish that sentence.

“That’s a bit informal, wouldn’t you say? Show some respect, it’s your Majesty.” Regina took an intimidating step forward as she said the latter, and the guards pulled Emma back by her arms immediately after.

“Ah ah.” The Queen tutted as she struggled against their hold, “You’re not going anywhere. Snow White may have left the party early, but… I suspect your night has just begun.” The dramatic pause did nothing but increase the Princess’ anxiety of what was about to happen. She chuckled darkly. “Take her away.”

The guards forced her to walk forward, one of them growled, “Come on.” She looked at the ring in her hand helplessly as she could do nothing but obey them, and without that ring her parents would never fall in love. Everything sure seemed helpless at this point.

\------

Once in the castle, it seemed Emma was about to get one more meeting with Her Majesty, considering the guards were dragging her some place that was a couple of floors up rather than down to the dungeons. That was good, right? She’d have a chance to explain herself, maybe she would get Regina to listen to her. Emma should have known better. She checked herself in the mirror only to see Princess Leia stare back at her; her disguise was still up.

“Kneel before the Queen.” One of the guards growled.

“Really?” She didn’t expect Princesses also had to kneel like peasants, you never really read anything about that. Besides, she found the idea of kneeling a bit ridiculous, and the cold stone floor wouldn’t exactly be comfortable.

But then a sound came from the shadows: Regina. “Yes, really.”

The Queen nodded curtly and the guards immediately proceeded to push her down to the floor, barely leaving time for her to get in a more or less comfortable kneeling position. It wasn’t like this was the first time she knelt anyway, and she almost automatically folded her hands in her lap.

“The bandit Snow White, where is she?” Regina walked towards her slowly and calculated, taking off her gloves and she seemed almost bored. As if she had done this a hundred times too many before without any results, not expecting to get any information out of this, but still trying just in case.

Emma almost felt bad for the woman, but she really couldn’t afford to help her even if she could. Her answer came out more as a mumble, “I already told your guards, I have no idea.”

“I don’t know what Kingdom you come from, Princess Leia, but here the price for aiding Snow White is steep.” Her face moved every bit like the Regina she knew from the present - future? – whenever she was threatened and returned that favor. It was the mask of a leader, which that made her wonder yet again what made her this way and kept her that way for decades.

Again she was mumbling more than anything else. “I don’t know where she is, but if you let me go I’ll help you find her.” That statement would be a guaranteed half-truth, because she would find Snow if it was the last thing she did. In fact, it might very well be the last thing she’d do would she fail, because her life was in very real danger.

This situation also reminded her of before, back in Storybrooke when she knocked over their town sign. She’d offered her services back then as well, as long as they’d let her out, and she truly had helped find Henry. Except now it wasn’t about Henry, he technically didn’t even exist yet.

She seemed interested for about half a second, when she began seizing her up, even smelling Leia. _Is she honestly smelling me right now? Oh no, what if she can smell magic._

“You’re no Princess, I know a dirty street rat when I see one.” The pointed finger wagging at her made her feel even smaller than she already felt, fearing Regina would find out. “And I know not to trust such creatures.”

Regina might not know who she was really, but that hit home hard. The fact was that she had been out on the streets for a long time, and people never did consider her to be trustworthy. To hear her say it hurt even more than from others. It was the exact same situation as in Storybrooke, had the curse truly changed her that much? _It’s her past version, she can’t know you._ She tried to reassure herself. _Henry is the only person she truly loves, of course she’d let you help her back then._

“The dungeon.” The final word that marked the end of the conversation, and the end of her freedom it would seem. At least she was still there, so there was still time.

\------

The guards dragged her off to the dungeon and pushed her in one of the cells, locking the door behind her, of course. Even the prison guards back in Phoenix were still a bit more decent, which was something she never expected to think. She could acknowledge that the prison cells weren’t half as bad, especially compared to this. She hadn’t been in a worse place before, and that really said something, but this didn’t even have hay or anything to lay on. Just… loose stones.

“Are you alright?” A feminine voice. Well, at least she wouldn’t be alone.

“Yeah, I think so, thanks. I’m...” _Remember Swan, the disguise is still active._ “Leia.” She got up slowly to get a better look at her prison mate. Her skin had a gold brown-ish tone, at least in this lighting it looked like that, with decently long curled dark hair. There was a red cloak or robe covering her to keep her warmer.

“I wish I could say it was nice to meet you.” Her voice was friendly, at least her companion would be kinder than the ones about a decade ago.

“Yeah, but under the circumstances I get it. What’s your name?”

“I dare not speak it here. The Queen doesn’t know who I am and my silence is the only thing keeping my family safe.”

Well, that did sound like the Evil Queen she heard about in fairy tales, or at least what she imagined Regina to be with the stories she heard and the fear she had instilled. Nonetheless it was hard to accept with the Regina she had gotten to know, even when she just got her magic back she wasn’t all that bad. Just hurt… and possibly scared. “She’s pretty ruthless, hm?”

The silent nod affirmed it.

Then she remembered something she hid under her cloak, and took it out of there. “Here, you hungry? I swept it off the food tray on the way down.” Her smile as she handed it over gave Emma the idea she hadn’t been fed for a while now. But with the woman now in the light and up close, she finally recognized her. She stared at her in shock.

“What? What is it?”

“I.. I saw you in the village with the Queen, I wanted to help, but-“

“It’s alright, if you had tried to free me you would’ve just ended up in here a day sooner.”

“What did she put you in here for?” She seemed too kind to cause any harm whatsoever, what possibly could have set Regina off like that?

“I knew where Snow White was hiding, but I refused to tell the Queen.”

Ah, the Snow White thing, she did mention something like that in their brief exchange. But did she honestly put herself in danger to help her mother? “You gave up your freedom to ensure Snow White’s?”

She didn’t miss a beat. “Yes. I believe her to be innocent.”

“How long are you in for?” Emma asked curiously.

The woman’s brows knitted together, “Same as you. Just one more night.”

That caused her some confusion. “Really? One night? Wha- Why, is Regina going soft?”

The answer surprised her as the woman just stared at her in disbelieve, though really she shouldn’t have been so surprised. “No. One night because.. tomorrow everyone here is to be executed.”

_You ought to be kidding me._ She would never be able to deliver the ring to her parents, they would never fall in love, but her fading from existence wouldn’t matter anymore. After all, she’d be killed. But wouldn’t that mean her execution wouldn’t have happened technically? Because she wouldn’t have been born in the first place? _Ugh, this stuff is giving me a headache._

She slowly sat down in the back of her cell, fiddling with her ring. Or well, her parents’ ring rather.

“What’s that?” The woman asked.

Emma sighed as she thought about it once more. “It’s my parents’. I guess you can call it their wedding ring.” Really the entire thought was just saddening, how long until she would fade from existence? Until the marriage of her father was arranged with the other Princess? Until the moment of conception, or well, originally?

“And they entrusted you with it?”

“Sort of… I need to get it back to them.” She stated sadly.

“Being away from family is a terrible, terrible thing.”

“Yeah, it is.” The woman probably had a loving husband waiting for her, perhaps even a child, maybe more than one. Parents perhaps as well, who knew.

“The longer I’m separated from them, the pain doesn’t dull. It worsens. Maybe because I know… I’ll never see them again.“

“If my mom was here, she would tell me to have hope. Maybe you should too. Who knows, maybe you will end up with them again.” _I know I won’t._ _If I’m to be executed, I wouldn’t have existed, and Henry wouldn’t be there either._ _Henry. Neal. Wait a second._ She scanned her cell to find anything useful at all.

She shook her head, “I don’t think so. I’m fairly certain they already think that I’m dead. And soon that will be true.”

There it was, there was a bit of metal string around the spoon. “Maybe not.” Emma said as she got up to fetch the spoon, twisting the metal off of it. It was perfectly bendable as hoped. “Give me your spoon.”

The woman gave her that and looked at her curiously. “What are you doing?”

But the blonde wasn’t listening anymore, she was already focusing on the lock. “It’s all about the tumblers…” She whispered to herself as she recalled her short lesson with Neal at the old fair, having bended the two metal strings to her wishes now. She poked them in the keyhole and fumbled with them. _I hope I’m doing this right._

A final click indicated that she had managed to unlock it, and she twisted it to free herself. “You did it.” The woman breathed beside her, smiling in disbelieve. Who knew someone would be able to escape the Queen, after all?

Emma grinned and then turned to the other woman’s cell, pondering whether or not she should free her as well. “What are you waiting for, go, get out of here.” The woman encouraged. “Go!”

But she couldn’t help herself, she couldn’t just let this woman die in here. So, being the savior that she was, she freed her as well before setting out for the exit. _Let’s hope I won’t have to face too many guards._

\------

In the meantime Hook had assembled a little rescue party, including Red, a child of the moon. She, turned into a wolf, was able to take down some of the Dark Castle’s guards. Teamed up with Charming and Hook – though Hook was there more for his good looks – there wasn’t a place where they could run off to. They just took down a guard when Emma and the woman ran into them.

“Swan?”

Emma grinned lightly at the sight of her companion from the future, “Hook.” That was it, they would be safe now as they got through the obstacles from the other side. They’d have a fast passage out of the castle.

“What the hell are you doing here, you’re depriving me of a dashing rescue.”

“Sorry, the only one who saves me, is me. Speaking of which, I’m not gonna be around much longer until we find where this belongs.”

“I think that belongs to me.” Charming interrupted as he took his ring. _Good, the ring is in place._

“Let’s get out of here, someone else is coming.” Red warned before she turned around to dash off, Charming and Hook quickly following.

“Come with me.” Emma told the woman as she grabbed her, which she did. The two of them ran away, but unfortunately the savior wasn’t around the corner fast enough with her companion.

“You two! Hold it right there!” One of the guards roared at them. _Shit, shit, just great._

Emma froze into place, effectively stopping the woman, just to keep them from seeing the other three. As she turned around with her caught puppy look – you know the one – she noticed that there were about five of them rather than just one or two as she expected. No way out then, and the rest of the group didn’t seem to have heard them, or expected the savior would be able to get out of that situation herself.

She sighed as the guards grabbed them again, not even struggling anymore. She had tried all possible resistances before, they didn’t ever loosen their holds. Before she knew it, they were back in their respective cells.

“I don’t know how you got out, but that won’t happen again.” The guard growled at her, and settled in with another guard to actively guard them up close. _At the very least Henry will be alive, Hook will make my parents fall in love, I hope._

Emma sighed and positioned herself back against the stone wall of her cell, but this time in the corner farthest away from the other cell.

“It was a good attempt…” The woman tried to console her, but Emma just shook her head.

“Our death is probably just going to be more painful now, thanks to me.” Whatever chance they had before, they lost now.

The rest of the day went by in silence.


	2. Busted

The morning of their execution had arrived, and naturally they couldn’t expect the Queen herself to visit them. They’d be lucky if she would even be there at the moment they would actually lose their lives. Two guards went in to take the other woman first, so Emma guessed they’d just be picked up one by one or something.

“It was nice to have known you, Leia.” She spoke as she was dragged out of the dungeon. “May your death be merciful.”

“Thanks, I hope your family will stay safe. Your sacrifice won’t be in vein.”

She smiled sadly, and that was the last Emma saw of the woman, or ever would see. If she really thought about it, those goodbyes were just completely insane. Who wished someone else a merciful death? And yet in this situation it was perfectly acceptable, because it is the only thing she could hope for at this point.

Henry will have thought she died while getting sucked in that portal, may that be out of heroism or stupidity they will never know. Hopefully he will assume the former, and he probably will. In fact, all the Charmings will probably assume that. Regina will probably go for the latter, though. _Why do I care about that anyway, she is the one who is about to kill me after all. She won’t even know that it is me she killed, she’ll never know it._ Well, that was of course if the magic disguise remained intact after her death.

Right, the magic disguise, maybe undoing it will save her life? After all, she wouldn’t be Leia at that moment, would she now? She’d just be herself, not the woman who aided Snow White. Well, she did, but Regina wouldn’t know that, right? Unless her smell would betray her? _Why_ did _she smell me?_

That didn’t matter, all that mattered was her chance. The only one who could undo this magic, would be Rumplestiltskin. She took a deep breath, before saying his name, starting softly. “Rumplestiltskin?” Supposedly he would be summoned by merely mentioning his name, but he didn’t seem to come. “Rumplestiltskin!” She called out louder, but yet again there was no reaction. “RUMPLESTILTSKIN!” The savior was yelling at the top of her longs now, thinking maybe he wouldn’t hear her, but it seemed that that didn’t work either. “Please?” She sighed.

“You are calling for the Dark One. Why?”

A very familiar feminine voice sounded out from in front of her, and her eyes widened in the realization that Regina was standing in front of her cell. “Reg-… Your Majesty. Why are you-”

She tutted her disapproval, but her smug exterior gave away some of the amusement she got out of it. “Ah ah. I asked you a question, dear. Don’t let me ask you again.”

“I.. Well, I can try, right? I mean, I heard he makes deals and stuff…” Emma really couldn’t allow herself to tell the truth right now, it might mess up the entirety of the future. Just imagine if the Evil Queen would know about the future, she’d learn about her mistakes and decide against them. No, that couldn’t happen.

The dark haired woman narrowed her eyes at her, making the blonde shift a little under the gaze, but seemed to relax after that, if only a little. “He knows better than to interfere with my plans, I can assure you. He cares little for others, much less dirty street rats who have nothing to offer.”

Emma wanted to protest, because she had more than enough to bargain with just for existing, however managed to keep it in. She merely sighed in defeat. “I guess you’re right, I’m about to die anyway.”

Much to her disdain, Regina seemed to enjoy the thought of having broken a once hopeful soul. “Now who told you that, dear? That pitiful peasant you spent the night next to?” She was mocking her with a faked pout, _bitch._ “Don’t worry dear, _princesses_ get a different treatment. After all, we wouldn’t want to anger your entire Kingdom, now would we?”

The blonde glared at her, she would love to just smack that smirk off her face, to punch her like she did back when Graham was still alive. A murder which she is fairly certain this woman was also responsible for. Or well, will be responsible for.

“Now now, that look is _very_ unbecoming, dear. Have your parents never taught you differently? Which King and Queen would that be, hm?”

Regina seemed to truly like her taunting, and truthfully it was working. Emma could feel her anger boil up, especially at the notice of her parents. Unknowingly this woman had landed a really low blow. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” She growled.

“Indeed I would.” That casual answer threw her off guard. “It would seem no one here knows about you, dear. No knowledge about anyone named Leia, may you be a princess or not. However did you pick the name?”

The tone and words implied the Queen knew something more, or at the very least that she wasn’t who she claimed she was. “Would you believe it if I said I just didn’t like the name my parents picked for me and settled on a new name that I felt comfortable with?”

“No.”

“That I was from another realm?” The blonde tried.

“Only if you could tell me how you got here in explicit detail.” Of course she wouldn’t be fooled easily, didn’t seem like the type.

Emma sighed, “What if the truth would be so dangerous that I can’t tell anyone?”

The Queen’s eyebrow rose at that briefly, but it was long enough for her to see. “What could possibly be so dangerous about knowing the origin of a name?”

“Stuff… Maybe it was named after something so fearsome that ju-“

“Enough.” Regina growled. “I am not in the mood for games this morning, _Leia_ , either you tell me, or you will not be fed until next sunrise.”

The savior creased her eyebrows, “You mean that I’ll still be alive tomorrow?”

“Well, I am not about to feed a dead body, that would be a waste of food.”

Her eyes widened, “Really? Oh god, thank you, how-“

“Manners, princess. It’s still, _your Majesty._ At least make sure you have the right gender if you so decide to call me a goddess.” She smirked, causing the blonde to roll her eyes. “But you have yet to answer my question. Last chance.”

She sighed, she probably wasn’t going to stop until she got an answer. After all, she had a lot more time than Emma did, or at least decided how _much_ time she’d have left.  “Fine, _your Majesty._ I called myself after a fictional character that I once s-… heard about. You probably already figured it was a false identity.”

“Now, was that so hard?” The Queen mocked. “That is well enough, for now. If you know what is good for you, don’t try to escape again, princess. I will take my leave now, there is much to do in order to kill Snow White.”

As much as it surprised her that her almost escape had basically been brushed off, panic set in her system at the mention she’d kill her mother. She shot forward and latched onto the bars, but Regina had already taken her distance, laughing darkly at her reaction. _She couldn’t kill her in the past either, it will be alright._ A voice resounded from the back of her head, calming her enough not to have an outburst. So instead she settled on a glare. “You won’t be able to find her.”

“We’ll see about that. Until next time, _princess_.”

And with that, she was gone in a puff of deep purple smoke, leaving Emma back to her solitude. She slumped back to the wall and slid down with a sigh. “I just hope Hook is having more success with my parents…”

\------

A purple puff of smoke appeared at the place where just mere hours ago Snow White had burned. That Leia, or whatever her name was, didn’t need to know she was already dead. No, she would play her for a while, that could be amusing, see how far she would go for the safety of the dead princess. She grinned as she recalled the events of the night before, once again reveling in the feeling of victory, though that feeling was quickly fading.

The Queen growled out of frustration and threw a fire ball at one of the banners. “Killing Snow White was supposed to make me happy! Why am I not happy?” Then she looked up at the burning cloth, waving at one of the guards. “Replace that when it’s done burning.” She ordered, not even bothering to look whether or not he was listening; she knew he would. The fire consumed the cloth like the darkness had once consumed her, there was only one remedy that could stop it before it had destroyed everything.

In the case of fire it was something common like water, but for darkness the only remedy was love, True Love in her case. She had sunk too deep for a common crush – like perhaps that fresh one just now – to get her out of there, and she knew for a fact that there wasn’t a True Love for her out there anymore. After all, Daniel was hers, wasn’t he? And he was dead. Because of Snow White. And now she is dead, too. Everyone was dead, except for her father. Probably her mother too, but she was banished to a faraway land that she would never be able to leave, hopefully.

Would Daniel really have wanted this? _It doesn’t matter, I avenged him, that is all that matters._ But what now? She avenged him, but it hadn’t made her happy. He was gone, she would never get a happy ending with him, and apparently bringing him back to life wasn’t an option either. Been there, done that, didn’t work. She pulled out the ring she got from him so long ago and placed a soft kiss on it, “Oh Daniel, what do I do? If only you were here I could be happy with you, how will I find my happiness now? No one will ever love me like you did, not after what I’ve done for my revenge, _our_ revenge.” But if it was their revenge, why did it feel so strange saying it like that? She felt like she made all the wrong decisions. Would Daniel to tell her to let go of him and find love again? _No, I can’t think like that, he is my one and only love and I won’t betray him. Revenge was worth it._

Her thoughts came to a stop the moment the cloth was completely devoured by the flames, only the ashes on the ground being a reminder of what was once there, like a crushed heart. An end seemed so simple, so painless, there’d just be nothing left but the memory of you… She forced her thoughts away from there before those would go on, that wouldn’t lead to anything good anyway. It was time to get back to business.

\------

When Hook discovered Emma and that woman weren’t behind him once they got to a safe spot of the castle, he wanted to get back immediately, however there was a small other thing that caught their attention. Through the window they had been able to see Snow White burn alive. They had brought to his attention that the only way of escaping the castle alive was to go now, and that they’d come back later if needed.

Now the next day Hook hadn’t been able to sleep even a second, despite Charming’s best efforts to convince him to sleep. Believe it or not, he even told him a bedtime story that he hoped would relax him enough to get some rest. That would have worked, until a bug began plaguing them, that turned out to be Snow after Charming’s very necessary rescue of the bug; Hook would have squashed it for sure if it wasn’t for him.

With Snow back on their side, and them being back on their track to love, the pirate couldn’t interfere with it any longer. He’d travel with them a bit more, see if they’d truly fall in love as Emma predicted, and he swore to go back then and save her. If she’d still be alive, that is, else it would just be a suicide mission. _Perhaps I’ll need a bit of help from the crocodile for that, just to be on the safe side._ Then again it was the question just how safe requesting aid from the evil imp actually was for him. Well, death by the hands of the Queen or the claws of the croc, it was death either way. _One day I will stop doing this for that Swan girl._ He promised himself.


	3. Deal

Days went by, at least Emma presumed they were days according to the flow of food to her cell, as well as the new prisoner who had just entered the formerly empty one next to her, but she didn’t see Regina appear anymore. The only people she got to see – apart from her prison mate –  were the guards who were apparently ordered to keep silent.

She had been able to pry a little information out of one before about the executions, that there were executions every seven moons if necessary, which it mostly was. Generally prisoners got their own private cell, there were enough rooms in the dungeon after all, and they were fast to get out of there. From what she had noticed, she was the only prisoner who was there for the long haul, however long that would be. A lifetime, perhaps?

Another execution morning had come, and the man next to her was terrified. He had been able to stay composed in the beginning, however now that the guards were here to bring Emma breakfast with nothing for him, he just lost it. They’d be coming for him soon, and she could hear him pray to all the gods that were willing to listen for help. He’d been sentenced for ‘aiding’ Snow White as well, though he really didn’t seem like he had. They knew who he was, but he had managed to get in her good graces so she would spare his family.

When the guards came for him, she stuck with the same goodbye as she had given the woman before. She felt sorry for the guy, and she wondered how many more death sentenced people she would have to see before it was either her turn, or before she’d get her freedom, which was something she could only hope for. “Your sacrifice won’t be in vein, Felix, your family will be safe.”

The regained silence was deafening as there hadn’t been true silence since the new guy had come in. They’d talked a bit, or she’d hear his mumbling to himself, or at the very least his breathing, but now there was nothing with the guards gone. She sighed and tapped the bars to keep herself occupied, alternating rhythms and intensity. One could almost call it a melody.

“Bored, dear?” She hadn’t heard her coming, so Emma could only assume she’d poofed herself here.

“Yeah, there’s not a lot to do here after all.” After a beat of silence she looked up at Regina, only to find her looking at her expectantly. The blonde rolled her eyes as she finished, “Your Majesty.”

“You have a point. Are you able to read?”

She was surprised to find that it was a genuine question out of curiosity, and nothing of the mockery or offending kind. _So I guess they aren’t big readers in this realm._ Honestly what did she expect from an environment like this. They didn’t even have indoor plumbing. “Yes, I think.” Did they write the same here? She sure hoped so. “At least if the writing is similar to where I come from, and not like, Elvish.” The savior had been there once, really didn’t understand a word from it, which ended up with her falling from a bridge because of Regina. Magic lessons had been rough.

A book appeared in the Queen’s hand, open at a random page to show the writing. “Would this be readable to you?”

Emma closed in to the bars and squinted her eyes lightly to focus on the symbols, which seemed to be just regular English. She smiled lightly and nodded, “It is. Your Majesty.” It still required some getting used to titles and such, but she reminded herself for it to be more than appropriate at this moment. After all, she seemed to be civil right now, wouldn’t want to mess that up.

The book disappeared as fast as it had appeared, an amused grin forming on her face. “Then how about this. I give you a book to read, if you tell me your name. Your actual name this time, not a false one.”

She pondered over that, but then realized there wasn’t much harm in just a first name. There were so many children called Emma in her world, plus there was still the disguise. “I guess that will do. My name is Emma.”

“Emma…” She repeated, seemingly checking her memory if she had ever heard that name before. “And what family are you from, Emma?”

“That’s… not something I like to talk about, your Majesty...” She admittedly silently.

“Oh, but I am going to need a last name too, dear.” The Queen answered with a honey laced voice. “Your name does include your family name, after all.”

Even if she were to tell Regina her last name, the question was which one. “It’s complicated… I’ve had a lot of family names as I’ve been in many families. I was an orphan...”

Her face did show some surprise at that, if you knew what to look for, along with some curiosity, Emma guessed. “An orphan, you say?” _Yes, and Pan sure liked that._ “How awfully convenient for you in this position, don’t you think?”

No, it really wasn’t convenient for her right now. If she’d tell the family name she probably would have gotten at birth, she sure as hell wouldn’t survive. Besides, she’d have a lot of explaining to do, considering she is actually older than they are, and then there is the fact that she isn’t looking like herself right now. Should she tell her the name she settled on, it was dangerous in their own realm for the first meeting. Unless she would be so friendly to drink a forgetting potion or whatever, anything that would make her forget it, that’d be a dangerous thing. “I guess, but I doubt anyone here knows me under my real name, let alone family name… your Majesty.”

“So you claim that no one here knows you? Then what about that pesky _prince_ of yours? What did you call him? Hook?”

Emma’s eyes widened at that, “How did you-… I mean-… What?“

“Do you honestly believe one could enter my castle without me knowing about it, you ignorant brat?” She snapped. “Much less if they did more than once?”

“I-.. He came back?”

“Oh yes, dear. He tried to save his precious _Swan_ , he didn’t wish to leave without her. How touching.” The disgust was audible in her voice, and if she didn’t know any better, the blonde would say Regina could quite possibly be jealous of him. “I would have loved to give him what he wanted, but it is much more entertaining to let him keep failing and crush his hopes, wouldn’t you say?”

“Not particularly, no. If I know anything about him, it’s that he can fail a million times and still won’t give up. Trust me, I rejected him more than once, yet here we are.” The blonde rolled her eyes, it was truly unbelievable how ignorant someone could be, or perhaps he just didn’t care about her opinion at all.

Regina only seemed to get more excited with that knowledge however, “Good to know, that will make victory even sweeter. Now then, this Swan he was speaking of. Care to elaborate?”

“That would be me.” The Queen merely rose an eyebrow at her, it obviously wasn’t the answer she was looking for. “It was the name of my last family, your Majesty.” That wasn’t the whole truth, it was just the name she had kept, but she really didn’t feel like elaborating on that.

“Emma Swan it is, then.” She waved her hand lazily, which made a book appear in it. Ironically the cover had an image of what would seem a man on a white horse. If only the older – or was she younger right now? – woman knew. “For your sake I hope you’ll enjoy this book more than I did.” She commented as she handed it over to the savior.

She tried her best to stay indifferent as she accepted the book, grateful if anything. Of course she wouldn’t enjoy that story, oh how funny things can get when you know the future. “I just might. Thank you, your Majesty.” Surely cliché love stories weren’t really her cup of tea, but imagining Regina’s reaction to it would make it all the better. Besides, she didn’t have anything else to do, anything was enjoyable at this point.

“A deal is a deal, don’t mention it. I must get going now. Did I mention I need to prepare Snow White’s execution yet?”

Before Emma even had the chance to respond, she disappeared in her trademark purple smoke, only leaving laughter echoing through the hollow space. _No, that can’t be._

\------

In the meantime team Charming, now including just Snow White, Prince James, and Hook – or Prince Charles, as they knew him – had made quite some progress on the path of finding love. After Snow got her human form again, she had once again stolen from her dear Charming and ran off while ‘getting them some water’. He found her at the Troll Bridge where she had tried to sell the ring to the trolls, but they discovered who she was and that the Queen was looking for her. Needless to say her prince tried to save her, ended up almost getting himself killed, and some well thought out bluffing from the bandit saved his life.

Anyway, with them back on their original path, Hook was no longer needed. He finally had had time to rescue Emma, which he had been certain he would be able to do. Unfortunately his attempt had been futile as the Queen seemed to have eyes everywhere in her castle, and now he was on his way to do the one thing he hoped he wouldn’t have to do; search out Rumplestiltskin for aid.

As it would seem, he was the only one with the power to change him back to his ‘devilishly handsome’ self, find a way back to their own time, and to save Emma were she still alive. Regina hadn’t given away any information regarding her, merely that he wouldn’t be able to save her.

He sighed. “Rumplestiltskin!” The pirate called out, looking around him in the hope he would hear him.

“You’re back, what a surprise.”

Hook spun around at the sound of the imp behind him, followed by one of his infamous chuckles. “I’m afraid I’m gonna need your help, the Queen’s got Emma.”

“And what makes you think I’d be willing to help _you_ , dearie? Perhaps sparing your life once gave you the wrong idea; I’d still be more than happy to skin you alive.”

“Look mate, I wouldn’t mind just getting back where I came from and leave you with… present me, as I’m sure just one of me is already enough, but I can’t leave without Emma.”

“I’m sure you can’t, in fact, I doubt you’d be able to leave at all. You see, I’ve found a way back to your time, but unless one of you can use magic, you’ll be stuck here for the rest of your pity lives.” The Dark One chuckled.

“Well, Emma can use magic, problem solved. Will you help me get her back?” The pirate looked at him as if he was begging. “For her sake, because she will help you find your son… Please.”

“Alrighty then, but should you fail, I get to kill you. If the girl dies, so will you.”

“Sounds reasonable enough. Deal.”

\------

Regina reappeared in her room, sitting down in front of her mirror as she often did. She normally planned her next move here, or would talk to the genie in the mirror, however she still had nothing to plan. Other Kingdoms feared her and didn’t dare to attack her, and now that Snow was dead, the people would slowly but surely stop their useless rebelling as well. They had to, right?

“My Queen! Bad news!” A guard panicked as he ran into the room.

“What?” She snapped as she turned around, facing him. The dark haired woman recognized him as one of her most trustworthy guards, which made her stomach turn. If he panicked, something was definitely wrong.

“Snow White was spotted at the Troll Bridge. She’s alive!”

_What?_ But she burned right in front of her, didn’t she? _The pixie dust._ ”Mirror!” She roared, and the answer was immediate. The blue head of the genie was floating in the mirror next to her. “Show me Snow White.” The Queen demanded, and the image in the looking glass immediately faded to make room for a forest view showing Snow White. “No.” She growled. “No! This can’t be!”

“It would appear it is, your Majesty. What do you plan to do now?” The mirror’s head swirled back in sight.

She stood up and paced through the room,  gesturing for the man to take his leave before she would snap the neck of one of her most valued guards, pondering. “The Troll Bridge.” She mused. “One would think that those greedy brutes would be less likely to fail with such a generous reward… Alas, they will pay for their failure. I presume they are still under their precious little bridge?”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

“Good.” The dark sorceress said, before leaving in her puff of smoke.

\------

It hadn’t taken the Queen long to get the trolls where she wanted them, and she fittingly decided to turns them into bugs as Snow had wanted to turn her into. She was now back in her castle and had called the guard who had delivered the news to her in the first place. She released the bugs on the ground.

“Do you know what this is?” She questioned the man, pointing at the three bugs. “This is what happens to people-“ Well, you couldn’t really call them people, “-or in this case, trolls who fail me.” The woman made her point by stepping on one of them, effectively killing it, while closing in on the guard. “Find Snow White.” Regina ordered him, reaching out to lift his jaw gently. “I shall destroy her happiness.” Then she gripped it, squeezing it to the point of pain. “If it is the last thing I do.”

As soon as she pushed him away, the guard ran off to the rest of the troops for back-up, determined not to fail as others before him had done. _It would be a shame if he were to fail, really._


	4. Sacrifice

_Oh god, how the hell did Regina get her hands on Snow?_

_How long until she is killed?_

_Is she already dead?_

_How much time is left before I fade from existence?_

Emma knew that pondering over it didn’t make it any better, but she couldn’t help herself. How could _anyone_ at all remain calm under these circumstances? It had been a few days since Regina told her about the execution, and since then she had been in constant anxiety. But maybe that had been for nothing, surely she would have killed Snow by now if she actually had her captive? Either way she wouldn’t find out until either the Queen would pay her another visit, or until she would get another prison mate that knew about it. The fact that she hadn’t had any new ones yet didn’t quite reassure her.

She glanced sideways to the book she left in the corner, not having been able to bring herself to read it yet. Maybe she could start now and take her mind off her mother. _I guess I might as well._

\------

Rumplestiltskin had convinced Hook that it was best for him to stay undercover for a while, especially considering what he was about to do. Should he get caught by the Queen and escape, it could have a nasty aftermath. After all, there was another Hook in this time that would be completely oblivious to what his future self did, and killing him would have quite some impact on the timeline, as well as end his existence anyway.

He’d been poofed near the Queen’s castle with a sword and a huge load of poppies – you know, since his good looks couldn’t aid him now – that was supposed to knock out anyone on his path so he could slip right passed them, take some guard’s keys, get Emma out, and make his way back to the imp so he could undo his cloaking spell and send them back to their time. Or well, technically Emma would do that, though she was still convinced she didn’t have her magic back.

He sneaked past the front guards easily, not even in need of any of his supplies, and made his way through the castle that he had followed the first time. Not very surprisingly, the amount of guards had increased in this place. It wasn’t anything he wasn’t prepared for, however.

Once he knocked out a guard near the dungeon, he noticed the clattering of a set of keys as the man dropped to the ground. Hook immediately proceeded to look for them, not having too much trouble finding them. This was almost too easy.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here? Prince Charles.” The voice of the Queen drawled. He said almost, right? Of course something like this would happen.

“Ah, your Majesty. Always a pleasure.” He grinned as he got up from the unconscious guard, bowing to her. “Did I get into the wrong castle again?”

“Save it. What are you doing in my castle? After that Swan of yours again?”

“I’ve simply come to accompany your guards with their little slumber party.” He quipped, gesturing to the two guards on the ground. “They make quite pleasant company, don’t you think?”

He quickly regretted that comment as he felt magic smash him into the nearest wall, the Queen closing in on him. “I’m not in the mood for games, _Charles._ She’s still alive, but she’s not leaving this place, at least not with you.” Her nose scrunched in distaste, the smell of him invading her nostrils, reminding her of someone she couldn’t quite pinpoint. _Rum?_

“What do you plan to do to her?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know? Perhaps I’ll mar that soft skin of hers with whiplashes, or maybe I’ll have her head decorate my foyer. There’s so much I could do to that princess of yours.” Regina smirked as Hook began to struggle against her magical hold more aggressively.

“You leave her alone!” He growled.

“Now where’s the fun in that? But if you truly want that, I suppose I could have you take her place. The choice is yours. Your life, or hers.”

“Do whatever you want with me, then.” The man gritted out.

The Queen closed the distance between them. “Excellent choice,” she spoke as she reached into his chest, pulling out his heart as if plucking an apple from her tree. Both of them took the glowing thing in with interest. Then she glanced at ‘Hook’ with a grin, flicking her hand to transport him somewhere he’d be locked up. As for herself, she had another heart for her collection.

\------

About a month later there had been plenty new prisoners, consistently executed and not one interested in talking – or perhaps they were, but had their tongue ripped out – but no visits from the Queen. She’d read the book about twenty times by now, and she could fully understand why Regina would dislike it. It was a cliché love story between a damsel in distress and a prince on a white horse, rescuing her, asking for her hand in marriage, and live a happily ever after. After some thought, and she’d given it a lot considering she had nothing else to do, there were a lot of similarities to her parents. Or well, the original path to their True Love anyway, god knew what those two were up to nowadays.

Wasn’t the wedding between her father and princess Abigail supposed to happen around this time? The one that Snow wanted to interrupt, but couldn’t, broke his heart, went to live with the dwarfs and forgot about him and all that stuff? Would that happen the same way right now? She sure hoped so, and she needed to have faith that it would be like that. Surely Hook would’ve gotten them back on track.

But then again, he hadn’t been able to save her either, and the cruel reminder of that just appeared in front of her in that wretched purple puff of smoke. _Regina._

“You look even worse than I expected.” The Evil Queen commented as she took Emma in. “Was it the story, or were you that close to Snow that the mere thought of her death devastated you?”

“She isn’t dead, that’s impossible.” The savior stated as she got to her feet, moving over to the bars that separated her from Regina.

She seemed surprised by the confidence the blonde had in that statement. “Oh? And you’re sure of this, how?”

“I-…” _I can’t tell her the truth, it can mess up everything if she knows I’m not from here._ “I just know.” Emma stated simply, trying to seem as convincing as possible.

Regina’s look said everything, she didn’t believe a word. “You’ve been talking to someone. One of the guards, perhaps? No, that can’t be…” She pondered. “It can’t be someone from the outside either, there is only one person who’s tried, and I’ve made sure he didn’t reach you.”

“I told you he’d keep trying.”

“Yes, a persistent pest indeed. How _did_ you end up marrying that piece of trash?”

She shrugged, “I didn’t.”

“Ah, yes, the false identity issue. So this Charles – Hook, whatever – is in no way bound to you?”

“Besides… traveling-“ Well, that is essentially what they did, didn’t they? Regina just had no business knowing it was time they had traveled, may it have been accidental or not, rather than the land. “-together for a while? Nope.”

“I see. So you wouldn’t mind if I ripped out his heart and fed it to the wolves?” She pulled a shining red heart out of nowhere, clouded with dark spots, holding it in front of the blonde’s face, watching it change into an angry scowl.

“Where in the hell did you get that?!”

She smirked. “I did say he came for a visit on multiple occasions, did I not? It was easy from there on out, he was so willing to give up his heart to ensure your safety. He seemed to love you quite a bit, dear.”

“You killed him?!” Emma pretty much shrieked. “What the hell, Regina!”

Before she could process what was happening, the dark haired woman reached out her hand and wrapped it around her throat, gripping it tightly, her eyes budging out of her skull as she struggled for air. “One month and you’ve already forgotten your manners. You disappoint me, _princess._ ”

Emma was released moments later, gasping for air. “I’m sorry… your Majesty.” She panted. _Fuck this place, I’d pick Mayor Regina over Queen Regina any day. At least I can hit her back in our world without having to risk being killed._

 “You better be. You’d do well to remember that I could have you executed at any given time, should I so desire, and that I hold your little _boyfriend’s_ heart in my hand.”

The blonde scoffed internally, because Hook would surely like it if he were her boyfriend, but he wasn’t even close to such a thing. “All due respect Majesty, but why didn’t you?”

“Why didn’t I what, Swan?”

“Execute me.”

She scrunched up her nose. “My decisions are none of your concern,” the woman snapped. “Now if you’ll excuse me, unless you are going to tell me how you know Snow is still alive, I have other things to attend to.”

Emma frowned. “I-… Have a good day, then?”


	5. Apple of my Eye

A short time went by, perhaps a day or two, before she had a new prisoner accompanying her. It would seem Regina was actively searching for Snow White again, and had found another traitor that protected Snow. She honestly felt grateful to all that were captive for that reason, her mother had some many people supporting her and protecting her; each and every one of them loved her to death, quite literally. It was another man, someone who seemed like he chopped lumber all day if his muscles were anything to go by.

He wasn’t much of a talker either, whenever she tried to talk to him, all she’d get was grunts and grumbling as response, so eventually she’d just given up on it and went to read her book once more. She was so done with this story, it wasn’t nearly enjoyable enough to reread, let alone a 20th time. There had been hopes that Regina would make her another deal for another book, but her last visit hadn’t promised anything good regarding that. It’d probably take another month or so – if she was lucky – before the Queen would make another appearance.

Much to her surprise however, her next visit was almost immediately after the guy was taken away for his execution. Perhaps there just wasn’t any pattern in her visits and she’d visit whenever she was bored, or had time.

The woman simply stood there, admiring a shiny apple she held in hand. Emma curtsied with a “Your Majesty” mockingly, when she got the apple tossed at her. She caught it with ease and recognized the apple from her first night in Storybrooke, it was unmistakably one of Regina’s tree. The one she had tended to since she was a little girl, and Emma had taken a chainsaw to.

“Did you know the honey crisp tree is the most vigorous and hardy of all apple trees?”

Yes, she very much did, in fact it was Regina who had told her that. “I’ve heard of it, as well as that their fruit is supposed to be delicious.” She commented as casually as possible, glancing at the apple. The Evil Queen had had a thing for apples, and it wasn’t uncommon for hers to be poisoned one way or another. Considering they are back in the dark Enchanted Forest days, she couldn’t just take a careless bite out of it.

The Queen smirked at her hesitance with the apple, “Now don’t be shy dear, an apple never harmed anyone.” Except maybe Snow, oh and don’t forget the apple turnover that brought Henry under a sleeping curse. “Taste it.”

The tone was laced with honey, but the demanding undertone was more than clear. She eyed Regina suspiciously, but she most likely wouldn’t be able to escape her impending doom anyway. Chance on a sleeping curse, or a possible death if she would refuse to take a bite? With a last deep inhale she took a bite out of the apple, trying to seem more confident than she felt, not looking at the other woman while she was eating.

In the meantime the Queen was enjoying the show in front of her, summoning an apple for herself to take a bite out of. It truly was the most delicious thing she’d ever tasted after all, though roast swan was a close second. Oh the irony of it all, getting a crush on a ‘Swan’, was this was Rumple had meant all those years ago?

Emma seemed to be quite surprised that it turned out to be but an ordinary apple, which was delicious indeed. Henry hadn’t let her eat his mom’s apples because of the obvious reasons, so this truly was the first time she’d tasted them, though she had been tempted to take one with her when she mowed down that tree. “As delicious as they say.” She murmured as she took another bite.

The brunette merely quirked an eyebrow, “Well of course, what did you expect? A curse, perhaps?” She did look up at that, to which the sorceress smirked. “Oh no dear, I have far more enjoyable things in mind.”

In case the apple made her uncomfortable, this was far worse. Instead of thinking about it though, Emma stopped her thoughts before they could escalate, “It does seem strange for you to share a fruit of your treasured tree for no reason, your Majesty.” She hadn’t forgotten about a couple of days ago, especially after something like that, this was odd.

“I can’t share an apple with my favorite prisoner without having an ulterior motive?” The flicker in her eyes of amusement, she truly was enjoying this.

She rolled her eyes, “ _Only_ prisoner. Pretty sure the other ones are outside catching flames… or wind...” The blonde cringed slightly at the visions in her head. “Whatever you decided to do with them.”

“I suppose you have a point.” Her gaze grew cold and distant, making the savior wish she would’ve shut her mouth. “Nonetheless, I’d let you pick your death of choice if I so decide to have you executed. They didn’t get that choice. Favorite prisoner is appropriate.”

_Gee, that’s reassuring, I get to pick my way of passing._ “Have it your way then. Since I’m your _favorite_ prisoner, may I ask you a question, your Majesty?”

An eyebrow rose. “You may, but don’t expect an answer.”

“Is Hook still alive?” In the past days she had thought about the glowing heart a lot, and began to realize that not having your heart in your chest didn’t mean they were dead per se, at least not in this realm.

“Out of all things you waste your question on _that_ scum? If I didn’t know any better I’d say you loved him back.” There was a brief look of disgust on the woman’s face before a glowing heart appeared in her hand. “As you can see, alive. Barely. He asked to get tortured in your place, after all.”

The blonde’s eyes widened again – Regina sure had her way of terrorizing people back in the day – _Oh no._ “I messed up big time a few days ago, didn’t I? How bad is it?” Truth to be told she really didn’t want to know, but she had to.

The witch laughed. “Nothing he won’t recover from. In fact, I’ve decided to keep him as long as you are alive. Until then, the only hands that can kill him are your own, dear.”

“I’d never kill him.” That was just wrong, she could never such a thing. Henry would never approve of that, and she wouldn’t lie to him, not again. Besides they had yet to find a way back to their own time, maybe he had a way back by now.

“Not even if it would mean your own freedom, princess? No desire to leave this place?”

“No.” The savior gritted out.

“As expected.”

That cold and distant look was back, leaving Emma wondering what could possibly be going through her mind at those times. She imagined those must be important ones, perhaps memories that made her who she was, or maybe… _No, she couldn’t possibly know about me._

The silence remained, as did the Queen for once. It was quite uncomfortable, but Regina didn’t seem to be bothered, too deep in thought. The blonde cleared her throat gently, snapping the other woman back to reality. Small talk wasn’t her forte, but she might as well give it a shot. “I uhm.. read the book you gave me, Majesty. I can see why you dislike it, the story. It’s.. flat.” A lot of other words went through her head to describe it: uncreative, superficial, cliché, uninteresting, unrealistic… Or perhaps in this world it was very realistic, which brought her back to uncreative.

“Well, I did warn you.” She seized Emma up. “You got quite a laugh out of it, however.”

Right, she had eyes and ears everywhere in the castle. She did laugh when she tried to imagine the reactions of Regina to the book, even though those probably weren’t the actual reactions. It sure had been a pleasant distraction. Unfortunately that only worked the first few times reading it. “Not because of the story.” She commented. Well, partly it was because of the many similarities with the future happenings, but that hadn’t been the main thing.

Her posture straightened, and it had been ramrod straight already. “Does this have anything to do with Snow White?”

“… Yes.” One of the parallels with the present had been that the girl was to be executed, but got saved in the knack of time by her prince. That wasn’t how she knew she was still alive, however. She herself was the indicator of that.

The Queen’s eyes narrowed. “So you believe Snow is alive, merely because of this book?”

That sounded ridiculous even to Emma, Henry’s book might have had the stories in them, but they hadn’t predicted the future; they had been about the past. “That’s not-… No.”

“Then why?” She demanded.

“I…” The blonde sighed. “I just know…”

She huffed in frustration. “Yes, you said that last time. _How_ do you know?”

Emma shook her head, “I can’t tell, your Majesty.”

“Can’t or _won’t_?” Her tone was threatening and indicated she was more than done with this. How did an attempt to small talk escalate this quickly?

“Both?” She cringed. “We are… connected, in a way. Not even she knows about it.” _At least, not in this time._ It’d be okay as long as she wouldn’t get into detail, right? There must be some sort of-…

“A magical connection?” The brunette questioned. Well, so much for finishing each other’s sentences, now she even finishes her thoughts.

She nodded. “Sort of…” Time traveling definitely happened because of magic, and if her mother were to die so would she. “It’s rather one sided, though.” The blonde added, before Regina would get any ideas of killing her in an attempt to kill Snow in turn.

The witch seemed deep in thought, picking her brain to think of all the connections she knew of, but instead asked, “Why would you do such a thing?”

“It wasn’t really my choice, it just happened.” She shrugged.

Regina’s brows furrowed, “A curse?” She didn’t know any other options as all others were supposed to be voluntarily, it wouldn’t work otherwise. But even with curses she didn’t know one, only the curse of the joined fates, but that worked both ways. Perhaps someone found a way around that? The only one that came to mind was Rumple.

The savior laughed humorlessly, “I suppose you could call it that.” It was definitely a cursed fate, but it wasn’t an actual curse.

“I see. I’ll have to pay someone a visit, then.”

Before Emma could respond, the woman was gone. She knew who she was going to visit, it was clear as day. She sighed and turned around, eyebrows rising in surprise when she finds a new book in the corner, on top of the other one. _The Ogre Wars._ Well, that sounded interesting enough.

\------

Regina reappeared in the castle of the Dark One. She didn’t care if the beast would be aware of her presence, which he undoubtedly would be now as he had several spells cast around his castle, she had business with him. As much as she hated it, she needed information from him on whatever he cursed the blonde with. It was purely because she wanted to know about every magic in existence, especially curses, not because she cared for that street rat, she convinced herself.

“Regina dear, to what do I owe this pleasant surprise?” A cheerful cackling was audible behind her, so she turned around to face him in the foyer. Of course Rumple would try to sneak up on her.

“Skip the pleasantries, you and I both know why I’m here.” The woman growled; she was not in the mood for games.

“Ah yes, Leia, was it? Why did you keep her alive?”

Her eyes narrowed, “The better question is, what did you do to her?”

The imp grinned a predatory grin, “Everything comes at a price dearie, as does that information.”

“Fine,” she huffed, “you tell me everything about this curse that is put on her, and you will get whatever you want in return. What is it?”

Rumple let out a child-like joyful noise at that, “The heart of that prince your are keeping captive, Charles.” He knew full well that it was his nemesis – if you could call him that – Captain Hook, after all he did cast that cloaking spell on the both of them.

She wondered what he could possibly need that for, but waved her hand dismissively. It wasn’t like that guy was important to her, he was merely a tool, a tool she could still use for a while even if she wasn’t in possession of his heart. “Deal.”

He cackled in a manner only he could, raising his finger as he was about to tell her about that ‘curse’ on the woman. “There’s none.” The sorcerer told her, scrunching up his nose as he did so.

“There is no curse? Then why is she connected to Snow, is it through magic at all?” She frowned.

“One question at a time, dearie. Indeed, there is no curse, and it’s hardly magical, you best ask her about that.” He informed the queen. “Now, a deal is a deal.” The imp sing-songed.

“Bastard.” The brunette cursed under her breath, making the heart appear. She pulled it back just as he was about to grab it. “Just tell me one thing. If Snow dies, will she die?”

“Yes, you could say she will.” He noted quickly. “Now give me his heart.” The man waved his hand impatiently.

With a last frown she handed it over, to which the creature seemed to light up in glee as he held it in his hands. He gestured for her to let herself out as he went upstairs with it, awfully obsessed with it. It’s not like she cared about him, but she’d be lying if she said this behavior didn’t make her the slightest bit curious. Instead of trying to find out, she just rolled her eyes and poofed back towards the castle.

\------

The Ogre Wars turned out to be a book about the history of this realm, or at least about the ogre wars that had played a major part in the history of it. The war had lasted decades and many people fell prey to the barbaric creatures. It wasn’t clear what had triggered the attacks of the ogres, perhaps they were just overly hungry, but the fact remained the same; they had to get rid of them.

Emma was disgusted to learn that they sent out children as soldiers on the battlefield, only an exception for those who weren’t healthy enough. They usually died on their own before they even reached that age of fifteen, but if they were still alive they were unsuited for battle. They knew those children wouldn’t be able to turn the battle around, they would merely function as a minor distraction for the ogres if there were even any soldiers to attack it while it was devouring the child.

Eventually the war had ended because of a single man, if you could still call it a man. For years the Dark One had been under the control of the king at the time, instilling fear in his people. It seemed terrorizing the peasants was a common way to rule, and though it didn’t surprise her as many had tried the same barbaric way of ruling in her world, it disturbed her all the same. Her world had moved forward, clearly this realm hadn’t. At least, if Regina’s reign was anything to go by, there’s a reason she’s called the Evil Queen and even according to the more or less censored stories she had done terrible things.

Either way, there came a new Dark One to be, and he single handedly stopped the Ogre Wars from continuing. Emma assumed that this new Dark One was Rumplestiltskin, as he seemed to be around for quite a while by now and this seemed to be less than 200 years ago, but she couldn’t be certain. Perhaps she could ask Regina about it once she came by for another visit.

She wasn’t sure how long it had been, it was however long she had taken to finish the 2000 pages long book. The blonde guessed it had been one and a half week at least, as she did take breaks, but maybe a month came closer. She lost all sense of time in this dungeon really, she couldn’t even be sure if the meals she got were on a regular basis or just randomly, it felt like she was starving the entire time regardless.

Sleep wasn’t something she got easily either, it didn’t matter how long she was here, she just couldn’t get a decent sleep on gravel. It gave her a new appreciation for the backseat of her bug, that was unbelievably comfortable in comparison to this. She’d had bad places to sleep, but regarding surface this beat everything. Of course here she was assured a roof, and enough food not to die – she hoped that that was assured anyway – but a decent slumber was something she’d kill for by now. _Would Regina still allow me to leave if I crushed Hook’s heart? No, I can’t think like that._

She found herself hoping the woman would come visit soon anyway.


	6. The Enchanted Apple

The dungeons were full with prisoners that were to be executed again, and so the cell next to Emma was filled again as well. There had generally been more women than men in the time she had been here, at least in the cell next to her, so it wasn’t surprising that there was another woman. They didn’t have much time to talk as she came in not even 24 hours before she would meet her end, if the atmosphere around the guards was anything to go by, quite like Emma’s first arrival.

She turned out to be a midwife, quite influential amongst the midwives in this realm, and had thus been appointed to the castle of Charming and Snow. Undoubtedly she wouldn’t have much to do there yet, or perhaps there would only be something to do once they had a midwife they trusted in which Regina kept interfering, but either way she was here under the crime of aiding Snow White as well. It was saddening to watch the woman lose the last of her hope, if not depressing.

“How long have you been here?” Miranda, the midwife, asked once.

Emma merely shrugged, “I have no idea, between one and three months?” She guessed it had been around two months by now, and that her parents were well on their way in their love story, but she couldn’t be sure, she was still having a hard time keeping track in the dark of the dungeons.

The woman seemed to stare at her now as if she was some sort of mythical creature now, though. “So the rumors are correct? Are you unharmed?”

“I… Yes, I am, she tortures someone else in my place. What rumors?” She frowned, if there were rumors spreading about her, it was possible she would change the past with this, and thus the future.

“Rumors amongst the guards, I overheard on my way here. They think she has a soft spot for you.” The woman explained.

Emma let out a relieved breath, that would be decently safe, as long as it didn’t spread towards the villagers that would remain alive. Wait, did she just claim Regina might have a soft spot for her? _Well, it would explain the books._ She let out a laugh as she thought about their conversations, though. “More like a rock-hard spot rather than a diamond-hard spot, if anything. I doubt she has an actual soft spot for anyone who is still alive, let alone for me.” It did leave her wondering yet again why she was still being held captive, though.

The woman chuckled briefly. “Perhaps, but you’re still alive _and_ you have two books. I wouldn’t rule it out so quickly, darling, they may have a point.”

Even if they did, it wasn’t as if she could just play on that. She didn’t want to end up dead, or severely burned, just because of a rumor based on suspicion. Besides, Regina would only push her away even if she would try, she’d figured out that much by now. Whoever thought that the brunette hadn’t changed over the years, was severely mistaken, and she’d make sure to let them know. If she ever got back, that is.

\------

_“They think she has a soft spot for you.”_

Regina froze on the spot when she heard the woman – what was her name again? Matilda? – speak those words. There was no way she was going soft, and she most definitely did not have a soft spot for someone like that dirty street rat. The attraction she felt was just that, and she did not go soft on her just because there was a draw to her for some reason. No, she told herself, she was just playing a game to find out all about this mysterious woman, that was all. She did not do romance, and she most certainly would not start doing it because of a _prisoner_ that aided _Snow White._

The laugh of the woman made her snap out of her thought process, Emma seemed to ridicule the idea of her having a soft spot for the blonde. _Good, at least she did not have foolish ideas or expectations._ The words coming out of her mouth made her pause, however.

_“I doubt she has an actual soft spot for anyone who is still alive, let alone for me.”_

Now what was _that_ supposed to mean? Did this woman know more about her than anyone else in this realm did? Of course, apart from Snow and maybe her Prince. No, it was probably just a deduction, maybe she was just very good with psychoanalysis, she wouldn’t be the only one to think she could figure the Queen out, or at least attempt to.

She flicked the view in her mirror away, she couldn’t allow herself to dwell on this, she had better things to do than obsess over her little prisoner, no matter how interesting the woman was.

\------

_“Hello, Maleficent.”_

_The blonde turned around to see the remnants of purple smoke fade, looking at her old apprentice. “Regina dear, what a wonderful surprise.” She smiled, quite genuinely, her eyes lighting up. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”_

_Sensing the heat coming off of the woman, Regina couldn’t help but grin. Old habits die hard. “Not that, dear, perhaps some other time.” She stalked towards the dragon slowly, “How have things been going here, that sleeping beauty of yours still asleep?”_

_“Asleep and well hidden as usual, her True Love still very much cursed.” Maleficent sighed an almost bored sigh, waving it off. “How about that snowflake of yours?”_

_“Still on the run.” Regina grit her teeth, she knew the woman would ask about her of course, but admitting it was never pleasurable. “But she can’t hide forever, I will find her.” If it is the last thing I do, she finished internally. Yes, she will capture Snow White one day, and that day she would wish she never got on that horse. “She’s the reason I am here, actually. I was thinking of a Sleeping Curse to settle the score once I do find her.”_

_“Really dear, my Sleeping Curse?” The woman lifted an amused eyebrow. “You know I can’t just lend it to you.”_

_Regina called forth a spell scroll, a curse to be more exact, to her hand. “I came prepared, of course. One curse for another.”_

_The woman glanced towards the scroll, frowning as she recognized it. “The Dark Curse. The curse to end all curses.” It was a curse that should never be cast as far as she knew, not with the price it has._

_“Interested?”_

_Maleficent’s eyes shot back up to the brunette, uncertain of her intentions with that curse. She could protect it, and the entirety of the land, if she had it in her possession. The witch, for one, wasn’t particularly interested in seeing a curse of this scale in action. “Under one condition. If I trade you this Sleeping Curse, you must give up the idea of revenge as soon as you’ve put her to sleep. It’s lasted long enough, wouldn’t you say?”_

_The Queen smiled seductively as she closed in, offering the other woman her own curse. “With Snow in an eternal sleep, I’ll have no reason not to.”_

_She always chose her words carefully, Maleficent knew that, but she figured it would be enough. After all, she had her own experiences with the curse, and the more time passes, the milder you get. It was never truly clear what the price of the curse was beside its ingredients, but she suspected it would have something to do with going softer afterwards. Making her Sleeping Curse appear, she traded the curses, noting the wicked expression that crept in on the other woman’s features._

_“Are you certain that is all, dear Regina?”_

_Regina schooled her features as the voice of the older woman snapped her back to attention, putting the Sleeping Curse away somewhere safe. With the Dark Curse out of her possession and into Maleficent’s, she couldn’t risk the other woman caring for her, or anything of a stronger nature. Especially not of a stronger nature. With their past, it wasn’t surprising they cared for each other, if even a little._

_When the brunette was done with Rumplestiltskin’s lessons, which mainly included spell and curse casting, she ran into Maleficent one day. They’d had a fight, and while Regina had definitely been stronger, she’d been out of luck in regards to the elements. In the forest there had been more than enough trees and other plants for her to manipulate – which was her favorable way of attacking back then – but it just couldn’t withstand the fire of the other witch._

_After that the dragon paid her regular visits, the two of them training together to improve their skills, and soon the Queen’s favorable element became fire. “Fire is life, Regina. Life and passion.” The blonde had said during one of their sessions. “But tread cautiously, for a fiery passion leaves destruction in its wake.” She had proven her point later that night, lacerations of claws decorating her bare back the day after, which had taken quite a while to heal._

_The visits hadn’t been just for magic training, admittedly. Passionate – though loveless – sex wasn’t uncommon between the two of them. Regina wanted to say that it was all and just poof back to her castle, finishing the curse as quickly as possible._

_Let’s say old habits die hard._

\------

The next morning the midwife got taken out of the dungeons to be executed, and she truly hated to see this one go. Now she understood why other prisoners hadn’t wanted to talk to her, it was only another bond to someone that would be destroyed in a very short time. She told herself to not talk to any of the prisoners that would follow, she couldn’t use more sadness in this dark confinement that smelled like death.

There was still no sign of Regina, and Emma figured she probably wouldn’t return here today as normally she’d come not too quickly after someone got taken away. She sighed and closed her eyes, allowing herself a quick prayer to whatever god above that was willing to listen. Religion was something that had recurred often in the foster families she had been in, and about half of the families wanted her to pray before dinner. It was common in group homes – and prison too – to pray, even if it was just to stay hopeful or sane, preferably both.

She might not be religious, but just on the off chance that there was actually a merciful god above, she did occasionally pray , if you could really call it praying. Often it was more like a rant, while other times it could be compared to an SOS. It was the latter this time.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw a purple smoke whirling right in front of her, small but definitely recognizable. When the smoke cleared, she could see that an apple had emerged, and not just some apple; it was a honey crisp.

She smiled softly and moved forward, picking up the fruit. “Thank you.” Emma said, knowing Regina would hear her even though she wasn’t here, and took a bite. The delicious taste filled her mouth, the hunger she had felt moments ago relieved completely; it was like a work of magic, and who knew, maybe it was.

When she had finished the apple, she started to feel irrationally tired and felt her conscious slipping. Definitely magic, the woman figured, now she just hoped it wasn’t a sleeping curse. She fell in a deep slumber, her torso resting against the rock wall.


	7. Curses

It was near two days later that the blonde woke up again, feeling replenished in a way she hadn’t felt in years. Okay, so the apple had been enchanted, but not cursed. She stretched her muscles and yawned, blinking a few times before focusing her eyes on her surroundings, jumping slightly as she spotted purple smoke whirling in front of her cell.

Though Regina never really showed any emotions, she looked awfully smug in this moment. “Did you know that Snow fell under a sleeping curse because of an apple, only moments before you ate yours?”

Emma nodded in acknowledgement, now knowing where their story was heading, but then realized this Regina thought she had just completed her revenge against Snow. The realization came too late, however, the brunette had already taken notice of the lack of concern.

“What?” She snapped, “You know something, what is it?”

The woman cringed slightly, how was she supposed to talk herself out of this one? _I’m from the future and her true love will wake her up within a week, oh and also I’m the mother of your future son, and I’m the product of Snow’s true love._ Yeah, that would work out well. “A uhm, sleeping curse, you said, right?” She started hesitantly, a glare of the Queen burning on her skin harshly. “It’s quite easily broken by True Love’s kiss… I heard, somewhere.”

“Point being?” The witch’s impatience was sensible, Emma really had to work on her acting skills.

“Well, surely that guy will wake her up soon, right?”

She laughed. A wicked, but quite genuine, laugh. “Oh my dear Swan, do you think I haven’t taken precautions for that? Her only _possible_ True Love is held captive, _by me._ Finally, I have my revenge, and the people will see me as their one and only Queen eventually.”

Rather than continuing on the same dangerous subject, the prisoner tried to change the subject to the latter. “What _did_ she do to you? Why is revenge so important to you?”

Her eyes narrowed, “I think you know that.”

Emma gave her a confused look, of course she had heard slivers from her parents here and there, but it wasn’t even remotely enough to be able to imagine what had happened, and why it was that important. “Actually I don’t, _your Majesty._ ”

“It is of no matter, I’m not here to exchange background stories, I am here because of that _connection_ you have to Snow. It’s not a curse, which means you lied to me.” The Queen’s aggravated voice stated. “And do you know what happens to liars, _princess_?”

The blonde’s features faltered; she had a bad feeling about this, regardless of the consequences, they wouldn’t be good. Considering Hook had offered himself as a tribute, he was most likely to face them.

Those suspicions got confirmed as Regina made a clouded red heart appear in a cloud of purple smoke. Emma didn’t doubt that this was Hook’s heart, it looked exactly the same to her, and she paled visibly as she recalled the words the woman had spoken before. _The only hands that can kill him are your own._ “You wouldn’t…”

The smirk that graced her features was chilling, and the savior knew that she was about to be in a lot of trouble. “Oh no dear, indeed _I_ won’t. You, however, will.”

“No offense, but you’re delusional if you think I’d kill him.” She gritted out.

“That is why I’m going to give you a choice. Either you will crush this poor guy’s heart, though he clearly made his mistakes judging by the condition of it…” Her voice started out mocking, but Emma was surprised to find that she almost looked sympathetic while looking at the darkened heart. That didn’t last long, however, it was gone so fast she could make you believe it was just your imagination. “Or you will tell me all you know about this bond you have with Snow White and how you are so confident that she will wake up from this sleeping curse. The choice is yours.”

Her hand held out the heart through the bars impatiently for her to take it, though it was clear that the woman would prefer her to inform her about this mystery. How much of a choice did she have? She couldn’t kill Hook, so she would have to talk, but what was there to tell? The _bond_ that she had with her would be a familial bond, but she couldn’t just tell Regina that it was because she was Snow’s daughter from the future that accidentally traveled in time, could she? Her knowledge of magic was far from good enough to make up another excuse, and besides, if the truth would be uncovered she would have to go through this again, it was merely postponing the impending doom. Something told her that this was Regina still being decently soft, getting in this situation again would have even more severe consequences. Excuses were out of the question.

But no, she couldn’t tell this either. If she did, it was very likely that more than just her own life and Hook’s life would be endangered. So she looked at the woman with pleading eyes, her only other plan being begging for another option. “Please, your Majesty, don’t make me do this. I really can’t tell you about the bond, or anyone for that matter. I’ll do anything else, but not this, please, I can’t.”

“Do I look like I will give you another option?” She snarled, “I presented you with two choices, no more, no less. Now either you will do this yourself, or I will make you.”

Emma got up reluctantly, slowly making her way over to the sorceress. It seemed she really had no choice, killing Hook was the only way. It would be safer for the sake of the future, it wouldn’t instantly make them disappear. Would a different future really be so bad? It could be. Rumple had already picked Regina to cast the Dark Curse, it would happen regardless, they needed their savior to break that, so she needed to make sure she would be there. If she would have to kill or die for that, then that would be it.

She reached out for the heart slowly, putting her hand on it tentatively. It felt as if there was a rubber layer around the heart for protection, rather compact but squeezable. She carefully picked it up out of the other woman’s hand, already afraid she was putting on too much pressure on it and hurt him. Her eyes shot towards Regina, who was watching her intensely, the slightest hint of a frown on her face. Clearly this wasn’t the option she had intended to be chosen, but there was no backing out from either side now.

The savior – as far as you could call her a savior right now – wrapped her fingers around the heart and squeezed it briefly, testing the waters. She couldn’t hear the gasp that came from the man who this heart belonged to, he was too far away, and Regina didn’t seem to intend to make this more agonizing for her, which was something she was grateful for. She took a deep breath, bracing herself for what she was about to do, and put out of her mind that this would kill Hook, or a person, or anyone at all, it was just crushing an object. Then she squeezed it as hard as she possibly could, wanting to just get it over with and make it as swift as humanly – magically? – possible.

It took way too long to her and the realization of her killing Hook this way crept back into her mind, after all the effort he had made to try to free and protect her. Tears formed in her eyes, but she couldn’t stop, not now, not until it was reduced to dust. Despite her attempts to hold them back, the teardrops rolled down her cheeks as she finally crushed the heart, dust slipping out of her hand onto the ground. Her body followed, falling to its knees, no longer able to keep her upright.

_I just killed Hook. No, Regina just_ made _me kill Hook._ She threw the evil witch an angry glare, tears staining her face. “I won’t forgive you for this.” The blonde choked out furiously. At least she wouldn’t forgive _this_ monster, she could see how her parents had issues trusting her ever again. She might know the future-Regina well, but this woman was _nothing_ like her. If there was any hope she had had for that at all, it was now gone. She swore that if she saw _her_ Regina ever again, if she survived this one, that she would make sure everyone knew how much she changed exactly and how proud she was of her for it.

“I don’t expect you to.” She replied almost sadly – almost, because God forbid she showed any emotion – before disappearing in her usual deep purple smoke.

With the woman now gone, Emma allowed herself to curl up and cry freely.

\------

Regina was not happy with how she had had to handle the situation with the princess – no, not a princess, her name was Emma Swan and she was a liar, she deserved this. Or so she kept telling herself. She wasn’t used to feeling things for anyone, or else could easily ignore it, but this particular emotion seemed to gnaw at her like a wolf that hadn’t seen prey for an eternity. There was no ignoring it.

It was a feeling she was unfamiliar with, or rather, had _become_ unfamiliar with after avoiding it for years. She recognized it as something close to guilt or perhaps remorse, and the feeling only got stronger the more she thought about what had just occurred. _This has been quite enough_ , she thought, _clearly this crush – or whatever it is – is not going to disappear on its own._ If she was being honest with herself, it felt a lot more intense than just a simple crush. She couldn’t possibly be _in love_ with that scum, could she? That had been a privilege for Daniel alone, there was no way that this street rat had capture her heart in an amount of interactions that she could still count on her hands.

No, but she had definitely grown to care about the woman, and even if she had repressed what she felt before, it was more than clear now. The pang of guilt hit her like a horde of horses that trampled her. She sighed and sat down on her throne; she knew how she could end this, but it wouldn’t be pleasant.

Then an idea struck her mind; what if instead of ending it, she would make use of it? She could get some satisfaction out of it, and the prisoner… Well, perhaps it would end up being somewhat more pleasant for her eventually, though that depended entirely on her.

\------

After Rumple had gotten the heart of the pirate, the first thing he had done was free the guy from the claws of the Evil Queen. She had no business torturing the guy, but she had nonetheless. He looked terrible, bruises and cuts covering his body, and it looked like his shin had been broken. The Dark One had fixed all of that quickly, it wouldn’t do to have a damaged second-hand toy. No, he liked his toys shiny and new. The only damage that he was allowed to have, was damage that had been put there by the imp himself.

“Aye, thanks mate, you’re a lot nicer than I remember you.” The man had commented casually, readying up to make his way again.

Rumplestiltskin tutted his disapproval, “Ah ah dearie, not so fast.”

He had frozen on the spot instantly, his body obeying the words of the crocodile without Hook’s compliance. The pirate turned around to face him, and a scarlet smoke surrounded him momentarily, before revealing his normal looks again. He grinned as he looked down at himself, “And devilishly handsome again, too. Who are you and what have you done to the croc?”

The imp grinned, “I’m still here, dearie, don’t mistake patching you up for kindness. I merely enjoy you more if you can fight back.” He looked at the heart in his hands, “Well, more or less. Can’t fight back when I control you, of course.” He chuckled madly, the way only the Dark One does.

“Can I make a deal to get that back, mate?” He questioned, pointing his hook towards his heart.

“Why, of course you can! There _is_ one thing I want from you, after all.” His voice was mockingly cheerful, truly a child to the core. A very mad child, that is.

Hook rose his eyebrows, “Well why didn’t you say so? What is it you want?” He wondered if this really was going to be this easy, it never had been before, but if he could strike a deal to get his heart back, he’d head out as a free man.

Rumple’s features darkened, “Your head decorating my walls.” Then he chuckled madly, “But I suppose you won’t need your heart anymore then, would you?”

“I guess not.” He sighed.

“Well, I guess I can live with the entirety of you disgracing my walls instead.” The Dark One mused to himself, before sending the pirate flying to the wall, magic holding him up against it, his entire body restrained and incapable of moving.

The man grunted as he hit the wall, smacking the air out of his lungs. “What are you planning to do to me?”

“Something you won’t like, dearie.” He chuckled. “Still want your heart back?”

“I think I’d rather just have you crush it.” Hook wasn’t stupid, he knew that whatever would be coming would be a fate worse than death.

He clicked his tongue repeated as he shook his head, “No no no, that won’t do. You see, what I have in mind is _far_ more enjoyable.” He drawled out the last few words, scrunching up his nose in amusement as he spoke. “For me, that is.” The imp picked up a vial out of the cabinet, pouring it over the clouded heart of the pirate and then walked back over to him. “As for you, it’s going to be a long and painful journey… _mate._ ”

Gurgling sounds of the man filled the room as Rumple held it tightly – too tightly – before replacing it in his chest. The sounds stopped for a while after the Dark One released his grip on the heart, but that got quickly followed up by screams in agony. “The curse of a thousand deaths, a curse specifically created by me, for you.” He cackled, taking a seat to enjoy the show. It would let him experience a thousand of _very_ painful and unpleasant deaths, completely healing him after the point of near-death, only to move on with the next painful experience. It continued on until his heart wouldn’t be able to bear with it anymore, or the thousandth death would truly cause his death.

A bit extreme? Maybe. There was a reason you should stay away from the imp, after all.


	8. Grief

The savior had ended up settling on some sort of denial, refusing to believe what had happened was real and thought of it as a bad dream. She probably wouldn’t see the other woman for a while, so there was nothing to keep her from the necessary denial. As long as there would be nothing to remind her of what happened, she would be fine, it was how she had dealt with all her other problems throughout her lives, why would this be any different?

She focused yet again on the first book she had gotten from she-who-shall-not-be-named-right-now and found comfort in the obvious clichés that so reminded her of the original story of her parents. They didn’t have a child in this story, however, just the ever predictable ‘and they lived happily ever after’ after their wedding scene.

It was quite stupid when you thought about it, because really, marriage are rarely happily ever afters to people in real life, and she doubted that would be much different in this realm. Perhaps people never divorced here, but that didn’t mean their marriage wouldn’t face bumps in the road and go to hell.

Emma dared to give her parents a brief thought, of how they would feel right now. They had lost their daughter yet again, time would undoubtedly just continue right now, and they’d be looking for her. No, it had been months by now, they’d be mourning her loss and perhaps they had given up on her already. Or maybe Snow still held faith that they would return one day, she and Hook – who was still alive and kicking and certainly not dead by her own hands – and that they would be a happy reunited family again. There was only one thing certain to the blonde; if she ever managed to get back, she’d hug the life out of her parents the moment she’d see them.

In turn that made her wonder who would be the first person she’d run into once she got back, who would have gone looking for her first once the time traveling spell would disappear. Would it be Henry she’d see first? Maybe Snow and Charming would have rushed after her? No, last thing she remembers she was avoiding them, they’d probably send someone else. Perhaps Regina would be the first to investigate the crime scene – magic scene? – and run into her. The woman would probably yell at her for being irresponsible, and then about what Hook meant at Granny’s with his ‘like mother like daughter’ comment.

How would she respond to Regina after all of this was over? Would she hate her for keeping her captive all those years ago, even though she didn’t know it was Emma? Just a name doesn’t say much, though she might remember it now, and her appearance is still a disguise. How is that thing still intact anyway? That is one durable spell Rumple put on her. Perhaps she could try calling out for him again? No, he didn’t care about her, about future her maybe, but not her.

She sighed and focused back on the book, no use thinking about all of this.

\------

Finally after three days, Regina’s potion was finally complete. She had held a close eye on her prisoner – Emma Swan, not the other scum that had been thrown in – and found that she still had a difficult time with coping with her actions. She might actively deny what she had done, but that didn’t mean that it didn’t haunt her in her dreams, or more accurately, nightmares. It wasn’t like she’d had peaceful nights before all of this happened, apart from the dreamless rest she had gotten from the apple, but it had made it all the worse.

She threw a smile at the solution in front of her before dipping another of her apples in it. It didn’t change anything about the appearance, make it a bit more shiny if anything, but no one would suspect it was cursed. Of course it was a curse, what else did you expect? Blessings aren’t really part of the dark magic compartment, are they now? Regardless of it being dark magic, Regina did mean well with this. The blonde wouldn’t feel guilty anymore, would sleep better undoubtedly, and that the other woman would get something out of it as well was only more reason to do it. Ultimately it’d be Emma’s choice though, who she’d visit as soon as those other pesky rats would have been executed, she of course couldn’t show others that she favored anyone.

A knocking indicated that this would end very soon.

“Your Majesty, the prisoners are in place.”

\------

After the executions had been finished, Regina would finally be able to visit her dear prisoner. As soon as she arrived, she was greeted by an icy silence, the hunched form of the blonde sitting in the corner of her cell. She wasn’t crying, not that she could see anyhow, but it was a far cry from being happy. Guilt practically radiated from her entire being, even if she was in denial about what happened. Denial never brought anyone anything except for more trouble, so it was time to break that little façade.

“Still grieving over your dear _prince_?”

The cruel voice of the brunette snapped her out of her trance-like state, empty eyes gazing her way. It was unsettling to see the normally fiery woman like this. Regardless of how much effort she put into keeping composure not to annoy the witch, the fire was ever burning in her eyes. Perhaps that was another thing that normally drew the brunette in.

“Hook’s still out there.”

Her voice was as empty as her eyes were, meaningless words falling off her lips. That was most likely what the blonde told herself over and over again, the mantra working in a way that numbed her. Her lip curled up in distaste, “No, he’s not.” The words came out harshly, but not quite as harsh as she had intended them to sound. “You remember, don’t you? The heart you crushed to dust. That, dear Emma, certain did kill the man it belonged to.”

Regina wasn’t lying to her. If the imp had plans for the guy, whatever those plans might be, he would probably be either dead or suffering. And the heart she crushed? Well, she never said the heart belonged to him, only that it belong to _a man,_ which it most certainly had.

Hurt and guilt flashed in emerald eyes, before anger settled in front of it. _Ah, another façade._ “Of course I remember,” she hissed, not caring for any consequences the disrespectful behavior could cause. “I remember you forcing me to crush it, not leaving me any choice.”

The woman pouted mockingly, taunting her further. “Oh but you did have a choice, dear. As I recall, you could have just told me the truth about you and your dear Snow White instead.” As far as she was concerned, that bandit was still under a sleeping curse, so it wasn’t a bother for now, but she was still curious about their connection. Speaking of which, she still had to get Charming executed later on.

Emma growled, “You knew I couldn’t tell you that. You knew it and yet you made me kill him! You could have just used it as a bluff, but no, you went as far as _actually_ making me crush his damned heart!” The volume of her voice raised as she spoke, outright screaming in the brunette’s face by the end of it. A tear slipped from furious eyes.

“I did, however you were the one who voluntarily crushed it. I was not forcing your hand, now was I? I can assure you I was not using any magic to control you.”

More tears slipped down the woman’s face, shaking her head. “It wasn’t voluntarily and you damn well know it! It was one or the other!”

A cruel grin crept upon her features, entirely theatrical. “There is always the option of disobeying, dear, haven’t you learned that? I might have been merciful and let you get away with it, it’s not you who’s getting your torture after all.” She needed the woman’s defenses broken, she needed the woman desperate and begging to be relieved of her pain. Anger wouldn’t do, but she could practically feel it rise. “Now, however…”

The blonde’s eyes widened as those words sank in. She had killed the only thing that was keeping her from being tortured, all consequences would be for herself now. Fear made a way into her system, slowly drowning out some anger, but the woman was way too persistent to let it go just like that. “You wouldn’t have. We both know you would’ve killed him anyway, may that have been through my hand or your own.”

Calmer. More careful. Almost guilt-ridden. _Perfect._ “Despite what you think, I do keep my word, dear, and I mentioned before that it was only your hand that could kill him as long as you were here. Anyway, I’m not here to talk about that, I came here with an offer.”

The blonde curled back up in her corner, her words mumbled. “I don’t want anything from you.”

Regina paid it no mind as she made an apple appear in front of the other woman. “You might want to think about it. This guilt you feel? This _darkness_? It won’t disappear, it will only grow. I came here to offer you a solution, something that would make those nasty feelings vanish.” The fruit was cursed with the Curse of the Empty Hearted, which lived up to its name. It would make her feelings disappear, the guilt no longer being a bother to her. The only thing was that it would also make her think she loved the witch. “I’ll leave it with you, should you want to make use of it.”

With that, she poofed herself away. The guilt would only strengthen now that her mask was broken, and she would definitely want to use it after a while. She’d keep an eye out for her, of course, but she was certain she’d take it. The curse had cost her the heart of the thing she hated most, and considering Snow was under a sleeping curse and her heartless mother in another realm, it had been difficult enough to find it.

\------

Regina paced through her chambers impatiently, waiting for a sign of her guards. She’d ordered them not too long ago – _way_ too long ago to her – to bring her Charming, but none had showed up yet. That was until now, the huntsman, one of her heartless guards, her _pet_ , showed up. “Where is he?” She’d asked. “The prisoner!”

“Escaped.”

Her temper flared, fully aware of what this would mean. With Snow’s True Love back on the road, he’d find her as he so annoyingly _always_ did, waking her up with their kiss. She smashed him into the wall with her magic, making sure not to shove him against the mirror. “A palace full of guards-“ The Queen started furiously, strutting over to the man, “-and you let him escape?”

“I did my best.” He tried, and all she could wonder is _what_ he had tried his best for. Surely he wasn’t fooled that easily by a _shepherd._

“You failed! And do you know what happens to people who fail me, Huntsman?” Her face was dangerously close to his. Her eyes narrowed as she observed him.

“I’ll find him. You needn’t worry, leave him to me.”

She didn’t trust his useless words, but she managed to calm down enough to think clearly again. Pushing away from him, an idea struck, the mirror showing where the _prince_ currently was. She could just as easily make sure he wouldn’t find his way _ever_ again, let alone the way to Snow. “That won’t be necessary.” The woman spoke, watching the image in the mirror. Yes, it _would_ be that easy. “He’s mine.” With a flick of her wrist, she sent him to the Infinite Forest, the place no one without magic had managed to leave alive.

Regina smirked, that should be able to hold him off until he’d starve to death. Then she focused back on her pet. “As for you, Huntsman… You won’t get off so easily.” A harsh punishment would be waiting for him, reminding him of his place. He’d stay alive, but only because he was hers and she planned on keeping him for a while longer.

Plus, it would distract her from a certain blonde who had yet to eat the apple.


	9. The Cursed Apple

Emma sat silently crying in the corner of her cell, the exact spot she’d been ever since Regina showed up, still not being able to cope with what she’d done. The woman had been right, the guilt had only been getting worse, and she hadn’t even been able to eat. It wasn’t anything she normally had trouble with, she had taught herself to eat whenever she could despite the circumstances, she’d needed that when she was still in the group homes and with foster parents. With some of them she’d been lucky to survive.

She thought back of what the Queen had said about the apple in front of her. It would be so simple, something to ease the despair so quickly, it just seemed too good to be true. There had to be some kind of catch, right? But thinking back, the apples she had gotten from the brunette had never done her any harm, in fact, quite the opposite considering the most recent one. The savior had desperately needed that sleep the apple had given her.

After more than enough pondering she decided it would be safe to eat the apple. She had no idea what the consequences would be, or the _price_ would be, but she decided it couldn’t get worse than being in despair in a crappy dungeon and would thus be worth the relief. The blonde took a bite cautiously, for some reason expecting the fruit to taste like something else entirely, but it was just the sweet flavor of the honey crisp assaulting her taste buds.

She ate the entire thing, the relief coming almost instantly, the only remnants of what happened her tear-stained cheeks and the memory in her mind. It just didn’t affect her anymore. There was a strange numbing sensation whenever she thought of it, not comfortable, but certainly not as uncomfortable as the guilt and sadness had been. She felt lighter.

It made her wonder why the Evil Queen of all people was being so nice to her, always giving her some sort of relief. Almost like there were two sides to the woman, one side dark, malicious, and unstoppable, not even the other lighter side of the witch being able to stop it, the side that offered her relief and allowed her to replenish, mending whatever damage the darker side had caused. It was interesting, to say the very least.

Now that she thought about it, that was exactly what her Regina was like. She recalls a party at Granny’s where she had brought her lasagna and left, not feeling at home between the town’s people. She’d snapped at her, and mere seconds later she was apologizing for what she had done, doing a complete 180. That was just her, battling the darkness day in day out. _Why the hell am I thinking about this?_

Trying to get the brunette off her mind, she started reading the first book she’d gotten here again, the love story never failing to remind her of her parents. She continued where she’d left off, the prince saving the damsel in distress from her death. Emma frowned as she continued reading, not capable of getting into the story, or even think about her parents for longer than five seconds at all. Instead it was the brunette – the Evil Queen – that came to mind.

The blonde sighed and blamed it on the dungeon, everything reminded her of her as she was the reason she was there, and she was also the one to give her those books. She just let her mind run loose for the time being, she’d try to focus again later.

\------

A smile crept upon the Queen’s face as she watched the blonde take the apple and ate it, she began to trust her on her word, despite knowing of all other things she had done. She watched as the woman attempted to read, but couldn’t get into it. Regina knew that feeling all too well, revenge had overtaken her mind and she rarely found time to be able to read. It had been the same with Daniel who had been on her mind all day, which is perhaps a better comparison to the prisoner’s situation. The curse was working, magic was a reliable solution as it showed every time. Perhaps that was why it always had a steep price.

It was too soon to visit her dear prisoner yet, but she would definitely keep an eye on her. Purely out of interest for the effects of the curse, of course, she told herself, absolutely not because of the woman and most certainly not because she cared about her. Which she didn’t, or so she kept telling herself.

_But then why do you still keep her alive, dearie?_

She could practically _hear_ Rumple say it in his mockingly patronizing tone. It wasn’t his concern, and she’d rather not think about it. Admitting that there was something there, that she felt a connection she hadn’t felt like this in years, wasn’t hard. As long as she kept it to herself, that is. But for that to be the reason of her mercy was unthinkable, she was _not_ going soft on someone because of _love._ It was simply the mystery she presented, and now the curse that she was under, that made the Queen keep her alive.

_Yes, that makes_ the Queen _keep her alive, but what about Regina?_

This time it was her own voice that questioned her, perhaps her younger version, but definitely her. It didn’t matter what _Regina_ thought, the young innocent girl that only wanted freedom and love, True Love. That side of her was dead, there was nothing left of it, it was just the Queen and nothing else. It didn’t matter, because she had no say in this, period.

“Besides, I have work to do.” She muttered under her breath, not willing to give this thought another second. “Mirror!”

\------

As days passed, Emma found that she couldn’t get Regina out of her head. Her normal tactics to get the woman off her mind were completely ineffective, and it wasn’t in the way it normally was either. No, it wasn’t _her_ Regina that she couldn’t stop thinking about, but rather the Evil Queen Regina, the one she would never forgive. Now that her feelings were out of the way however, she couldn’t be mad at her. Literally.

She wondered if this was what it felt like to not have your heart inside your chest, something she would never find out as her chest seemed to keep it inside of her magically. Cora had tried to rip it out, after all, and failed quite miserably. What if the Queen would try to do the same? Would she try it? Would she succeed now that her magic was gone? She hadn’t minded it when Zelena took it, not too much anyhow as she would return to New York, but now… Well, she couldn’t say she was angry or sad, but she would be at least one of them she was sure.

Emma also found herself hoping that the witch would come by for a visit sooner or later – rather sooner than later – and could explain what was going on with her, or maybe bring her another apple or book. No, she’d also be content if she’d just come down to talk, there was no one else to talk to after all, the company would be appreciated.

Her thoughts got interrupted briefly as a man got thrown into the cell next to her roughly, his scraped knees landing on the combination of mud and gravel. She’d seen it before, scraped knees generally being a sign of resistance and the guards not caring for it, just dragging you along whether you walk or not. The man launched himself towards the iron bars of his prison, trying to open the door again, but he was too late; it was already locked. He shook them to no avail, something many did when they got here, probably instinct more than anything. Well, at least she got her talking company now, so that should bring some relief and distraction, right?

\------

Though the man did talk to her – his name was Timothy, a blacksmith – it did little to distract her. They found their conversation often drifted towards the Queen, mostly Emma’s doing, she just couldn’t help herself. The man, knowing her under the name of Leia as that is how she still introduced herself, did ask her what was on her mind and unsurprisingly it was always the dark haired woman. At least, to the man it was unsurprising, but it still managed to freak the blonde out a little, though she was getting more used to it.

At the day of his execution, she almost prayed for the brunette to come and visit her. She was above begging, so she didn’t, even though she knew the woman would be able to hear it and it could increase her chances. Then again, she probably just did what she felt like doing, which most likely didn’t include visiting a ‘dirty street rat’ as she had so graciously called her at their first more or less private meeting.

What she didn’t understand though, is why she wanted to see the brunette who wronged her so badly. Was she _infatuated_ with this woman? There was no way in heaven or hell for that to happen, not this version of her anyway. Sure she could admit she might have felt some sort of attraction for _her_ Regina, but _this_ Regina? No, most certainly not.

Her thought-train got stopped in its tracks when she saw a purple smoke whirling in front of her cell however, and she practically jumped the iron bars of her cell to get closer. Whatever the reason, the presence of the witch elevated her, made her feel lighter, and the movement had been as instinctual as her former cellmate’s a few days ago. _Seriously, what the hell is up with me?_

“Emma.”

The Queen nodded to her, features business-like, nothing worth fawning over. Except that the acknowledgement did make her feel even lighter. _Let’s not overthink this now, I’ll have time for that later._ “Your Majesty.” She greeted, unaware of the smile on her face.

“You certainly look better. Decided to eat the apple after all?”

“Yeah, about that... Thanks.”

Regina smirked at the slight blush that graced the blonde’s cheeks, “You’re quite welcome, dear. I take it you like its effects?”

She shrugged almost nonchalantly, entirely unfitting with her appearance that was the face of a princess. “Well, most things beat being miserable, so yeah, I do.”

“I was hoping so.” The witch actually had been, it was the reason she’d cast that curse. She could’ve just let her waste away in her own regrets, something she reckons Snow is doing right now in the tomb that is her body, but she couldn’t. No, she _didn’t_ , of course she could have, she was the _Evil_ Queen for God’s sake.

“So, what about you?”

Casual, curious, cheerful. The woman’s brows knitted in confusion, “What about me?”

“Yeah, what about you? How are you holding up?” Emma questioned, grin widening. She reckoned the woman wouldn’t have a lot of people who asked how _she_ was doing, though then again, there’s a big chance they wouldn’t get an answer even if they’d ask.

“I’m doing just fine, dear.”

Beside that answer, that is. No one who was _actually_ doing fine answered that, but it was the go-to answer. “You can talk to me, you know. I’m not going anywhere, your Majesty.” She gestured to the iron bars between them, “Obviously.”

The Queen seemed to contemplate this. It was true, and now that she was cursed she wouldn’t have to worry about much else either, but still. Opening up to someone was something she hadn’t done in decades, which was unfortunately not an exaggeration; Daniel had been the last person she’d opened up to. Perhaps a little to her father, but never enough. She sighed, unsure of whether she should or shouldn’t take the blonde up on her offer.

The silence took apparently too long as Emma broke it, taking notice of the inner turmoil of the sorceress. “Only if you want to, of course. I just want to do something in return, I mean you _have_ been nice to me.” _Jesus Christ I sound like a smitten teenager._ She certainly would think about this later, but for now the woman was too distracting on its own, let alone everything she ‘felt’ during this little interaction. Again something to think about later.

Well that made things more interesting, perhaps she could use her as a servant in time, or even a slave of sorts. It was about time to replace the Huntsman, who continued to fear and fail her, it bored quickly. She watched her with interest, reaching out her hand to stroke her cheek softly, smiling at it rather than flinching – which Graham did whenever she reached out for him – the woman seemed to _revel_ in the touch. “Perhaps someday, my dear Swan, you will.” Regina retracted her hand, straightening her features. “But until then, you’re going to stay here. Have a good day.”

The woman went up in smoke, as always, and Emma sighed, alone with her thoughts again. This couldn’t go well. When she turned around to get back to her corner, she noticed there was a new book on top of her collection with a note. The handwriting was elegant, and she could see by the sign that it was written by Regina.

_I hope you enjoy this book more than I did._

It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make the blonde feel lighter again. Was that a fluttering in her stomach? _Smitten teenager definitely fits the mold._ She picked up the note and placed it between the cover and the first page of the book, quirking an eyebrow at the title of it. _The Evil Queen._ If there was any book she’d be able to focus on, it would most likely be this one as it was about the woman that possessed her thoughts, but something told her this book wouldn’t be quite as positive.


	10. Exit the Cage

“Your Majesty.”

The voice of a man disturbed her peace. Regina was next to her apple tree, just picking another two of them for her next visit to her dear prisoner, her _cursed_ prisoner. This voice could only belong to one man; the genie in the mirror who she had given explicit instructions on how to behave himself, and more importantly, how _not_ to. She turned towards the mirror, and the guard holding it, in annoyance, “I told you never to disturb me out here.” _There is a damned reason there is no mirror here._

“Trust me, I haven’t disturbed you yet, just wait until you see this.” The mirror swirled and revealed the sight of Snow White and Prince Charming.

A very _awake_ Snow White and Prince Charming.

“He woke her?!” Distress graced her features as she closed in on the view, willing her eyes to stop betraying her. There was no way Charming got out of the Infinite Forest, let alone in a mere week.

The genie did nothing to reassure her, merely confirm that her eyes were doing nothing but allow her to see properly. “Indeed. True Love’s kiss, apparently _can_ break any curse.”

Regina averted her gaze briefly as the man got on one knee in front of that _bandit_ , before returning to it. As much as she would like to ignore what was happening, she had to know. “ _Will you marry me?”_ The words echoed through her head like the thunderous sound of lightning striking, time and time again. _“What do you think?”_ Snow answered, and they kissed. _I think I need to throw up, that’s what._

“That will be one hell of a wedding.” The genie started, interrupting further thoughts. “There won’t be a dry eye in the entire realm.”

“Quiet.” She demanded, watching Snow more closely. The view shifted to a view close to her face. This expression couldn’t be good. Or maybe it was.

_“Let’s take back the Kingdom.”_

Almost amused, Regina leaned into the mirror as if Snow would be able to see and hear her. “We’ll see about that…” She could say a lot about the annoying young woman, but she was never a disappointment as foe, always presenting a new challenge. As frustrating as it was, the Queen lived on the thrill of it. A huntsman to carve out her heart, a burning stake that should have incinerated her, and now a Sleeping Curse that should have put her to an eternal sleep, she’d overcome it all somehow.

 _Perhaps I shouldn’t cause her injury directly, perhaps I should just let her suffer in her own misery. She wants the Kingdom? Over my dead body. She will watch as I own everything she ever desired. She and her shepherd._ That _will be her suffering. Exile._

\------

Emma groaned as she read the _Evil Queen_ , the book was a piece of fiction written by a peasant who mocked the woman in every single possible way and painted her a fool, something she was most certainly not. _How dare he make fun of her? I hope he was one of the executed fools._ She thought bitterly. Even though she couldn’t really _feel_ the anger, she could still get frustrated enough over this.

_Wait, what?_

The woman who she was never going to forgive, she was internally _defending_ her, now? This was ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. Even more so that she was feeling something – or not feeling, however the hell this worked – for _this_ version of Regina, and not her own. The usual feeling of… melancholy? That usually came paired with the thoughts of the woman were gone, it was as though rather than memories, all happenings were just fiction.

She groaned again and pushed all thoughts and feelings back, this was going to be repressing for the rest of her days here, until she found a way back home. _Actually, wouldn’t playing into her hand make it easier to get out?_ It probably would. No repressing emotions, however different they were from what she was used to, not now. Besides, she couldn’t help herself around the woman anyway.

And speaking of the devil, a deep purple smoke appeared right before her, revealing the divine – really, divine? – form of the Queen. She was wearing a black attire with a dark transparent layer underneath it, giving off a vibe as if she was ready to step into a warzone.

The blonde gasped as she saw the cut on her cheek, still bleeding as if it were put there just seconds ago. “What happened to you, your Majesty?”

Regina kept quiet however, and threw her an apple, which she caught easily. The brunette took a bite absent-mindedly, though the remainders of anger were still sensible.

Emma looked down at the apple, before attempting to lighten up the mood. “You know, the Romans used to throw apples as a proposal.” She said, before taking a bite of hers as nonchalantly as possible. To her credit, it did draw the witch’s attention.

“What?”

“The Romans, they were people from my world, though they lived about 2 millennia ago. As a proposal for marriage, they would throw an apple.” Admittedly the blonde hadn’t been a genius in school, however history had interested her enough, especially the age of the Romans. She wasn’t sure why, but it intrigued her, and as a kid she imagined herself to live in that time and become a soldier, or a gladiator. The interest had never faded.

The Queen’s eyebrows knitted together for a moment, “And you’re telling me this, why?”

She shrugged, “To break the ice? I don’t know, I wanted to lighten up the mood a little, your Majesty.”

“Do I look like I’m in the mood for jokes, Swan?” Her voice was stern and uptight, making the other woman deflate visibly.

“Not really… The cut on your cheek tells me you could use a talk, though. You okay?”

Regina sighed and conjured a chair, sitting down on it as regally as one could on a simple wooden chair, her posture rigid as ever. Perhaps the position gave her a sense of control, even if she wouldn’t have it. “Snow woke up from the Sleeping Curse because that _shepherd_ woke her up with a kiss. The same shepherd I sent into the Infinite Forest, mind you, I dare to bet that damned imp is behind him getting out of there. He proposed to her, and now they decided to take back their Kingdom, _my_ Kingdom _._

“I told her to surrender and give up on that _ridiculous_ idea and that she had until sundown today.” _Or I would kill one of her loyal subjects._ She didn’t say that last part out loud. “Needless to say that didn’t go quite as well as I had hoped for.” She muttered as she swiped past the gash on her cheekbone.

Emma frowned slightly, “She actually managed to injure you? But how? I thought you could poof yourself away in time.”

If that were even possible, her posture got even stiffer and straighter. That couldn’t possibly be comfortable. “I can.” The Queen stated simply. “But that _bandit_ seems to have better instincts than I anticipated, and predicted where I would – as you so graciously put it – ‘poof’ myself.”

The blonde wanted nothing more than to heal her right now, when she was reminded that Zelena took her magic, and even if she _did_ have her magic, the disguise wouldn’t allow her to use it. She sighed helplessly, “If only I could’ve helped…” Her eyes widened at the thought, and then even wider at the realization that she’d just said that _out loud._ _Well, fuck me._

“What was that?”

Of course she had to repeat it, of freaking course. “I-.. I uhm.. I said that, uh…” _Think Swan, think of something, quick._ “If only those instincts hadn’t helped.”

She shook her head in disapproval, “No you didn’t, I heard you. Why lie? There is no shame in wishing you could have helped me.” _You’re lucky you’re cursed._

Her voice was too kind and sweet, the prisoner knew she was most likely in trouble. The Queen didn’t do nice, not even Regina did. “I… Habits, I guess.” She swallowed. “Sorry, Majesty.”

“You best rid yourself of that habit, Swan. Don’t let me catch another lie.”

She sounded every bit like a mother scolding her child, or perhaps, owner scolding their _pet_? Emma pushed that thought aside quickly, whatever it was, it saved her from any consequences for the time being. “Will do.”

A hum in approval left the brunette’s throat. “As for the part of you helping me, I doubt it would have made a difference. Plenty guards accompanied me, the first as useless as the last in that situation, because I didn’t allow interference. Snow is _mine_ to deal with, and mine alone, you best remember that.”

“No problem, wouldn’t want to rob you of your revenge after all.” _Or kill my mother, and myself in the process._

“Good.” She couldn’t deny that there was a certain temptation to setting the two up against each other however, as they were connected, but having Emma dead just wouldn’t do. It was just to see the curse in action, of course, else she would have wasted the heart of the one she hated most at the time. “I would really like to know what is going on with you and that bandit. Would you mind telling me?”

The saccharine demeanor was tempting, to say at least, but she couldn’t. “And here I thought I was safe from that question, after crushing that heart.” The blonde sassed, rolling her eyes.

“Manners, dear.” The Queen reminded her. “You will find that I can be quite persuasive once I want something.” She wouldn’t threaten her anymore in regards to that question, but that didn’t mean she would stop asking about it. Not like she’d admit that out loud.

The savior shook her head, “I’m afraid I really can’t tell, though. It’s magic related, I guess, but that’s all I can say about it, your Majesty.” She wasn’t lying, it _was_ related to magic because of the time traveling, she wouldn’t have this problem if that magic hadn’t happened. It was only a half truth, though.

“A pity, perhaps some other day.” Regina let it go for now, it was clear that she was not going to get an answer any time soon. “Did you finish the book?” She nodded towards the abandoned book in the corner, not on the stack with the other two, as far as you could call that a stack.

Emma scowled at the mention of it, “Unfortunately, yes. I can’t believe someone would have the nerve to write that, they were practically begging to be executed.” She found herself hoping that whoever wrote that – they were at least clever enough not to leave a name – would be dead by now, preferably by the Queen’s hand. “They didn’t even _try_ to write you properly, this was pure mockery.”

She hummed in agreement, “Indeed it was, glad I’m not the only one bothered by it.” Even her servants found the book amusing and laughed when they thought she wasn’t looking. “I found the writer and congratulated him properly on his achievement of making the entire kingdom laugh at my expense, of course. It turns out paper is capable of doing so much more damage than harmless paper cuts.”

The dark woman’s eyes lit up with something awfully sinister, sending chills down the blonde’s spine in spite of herself. She couldn’t begin to imagine what that guy went through, but she had a sneaking suspicion it had been highly unpleasant. “So, is he dead?”

“Most likely. Remember how he wrote how even the possibility of a happy ending can be a powerful thing?” Emma nodded. “I gave him just that. If someone saved him within the hour, he is alive. Not fully functional, but alive. After all, who am I to kill an artist?”

The cursed woman quirked an eyebrow, “Then why do I feel like there is more to this story?” Truth to be told, even Emma wouldn’t give him a chance to continue his life in her position.

She chuckled darkly, “Because you’re a smart one, my dear Swan. The writer was an old widower, had no friends whatsoever; it would have been a miracle if someone visited him. All it did was letting him suffer for another hour or so, if nature didn’t take him during that time.”

The blonde almost felt _happy_ at the mention that he had suffered, and did smile at the compliment she had received. She should be horrified, she knew, but she just wasn’t. Instead she nodded to herself, “Definitely dead then.”

“Exactly my thoughts.” Much to the prisoner’s satisfaction, she seemed to smile lightly, though it disappeared quickly. “Unfortunately, I must go now. I will see you soon, dear.”

Before she could reply, the woman was already gone, though another book had appeared on her stack. She sighed like a love-struck teenager and sagged along the prison bars to the ground. _This is going to be one interesting ride._

\------

The weeks that followed were filled with visits from the Queen where possible, the atmosphere much like the last described one. One way or another they seemed to connect, though Emma was still thinking about what that one apple had done to her. There was one thing she was certain of: she wasn’t capable of feeling in a natural way, the only feelings she seems to have being positive ones towards the dark haired woman.

As time went by, she forgot how feelings were supposed to feel. Though logically she knew the ones she had weren’t the same, it was all she had and they got more convincing every time. She couldn’t see the harm of it anymore either; so what if she were to enjoy the Queen’s company? It wasn’t like she’d be able to get out of there otherwise.

Just because she enjoyed that however, didn’t mean she stopped thinking about her situation. The more she thought about it, the more she started to realize what exactly she had done to her. Though she never saw the curse in action, she was almost certain it was the Curse of the Empty Hearted. It was the only thing that made sense.

That afternoon, after her recent prison mate had left to be executed, the Queen showed up again with an apple for the both of them as usual. _Did that tree just keep growing apples indefinitely?_ They ate their apples in a silence that didn’t get broken until the brunette had finished hers, asking again what bond she and Snow shared, which she again refused to tell. Everything seemed normal, until a second silence fell, one that Emma broke this time.

“I know what you’ve done to me, you know.”

She instantly had the dark sorceress’ attention, lifting an eyebrow. If it affected her at all, she didn’t let it show. “And what is that, dear?”

“A curse.” Emma started, and though her features gave nothing away, the dulling in her eyes spoke book works. “The Curse of the Empty Hearted, am I right, your Majesty?”

The woman sighed and nodded, “Indeed.” She locked eyes with the blonde, “How is it you know about this curse?”

The savior shrugged, “I’ve heard about it, someone I used to know was planning to use it. They didn’t, though.” She left out the part where that person was actually the future version of the Queen herself that wanted to use it on her own son. “From what I remember, you need the heart of the person you hate most. Isn’t that Snow White, Majesty?” She was fairly certain it was, and obviously the blonde was still alive, so her mother should be no different.

“It is, however at the time she was under a Sleeping Curse.”

Emma nodded, this much she figured out, her mother was still cursed when she ate the apple, which was perhaps why the curse had worked. “Do you think the curse is working properly and not like, half-assed?”

“Half-assed? In what language is _that_ a word?” That’s right, the Queen _sassed_ her nowadays as well. The more comfortable she had gotten, the more of _her_ Regina came through. It still wasn’t quite the same, though. “Considering you’re not a mindless drone, it might be – in your atrocious wording – _half-assed_ , however I find myself appreciating this more regardless.”

This made the blonde smile softly, “I guess I don’t mind it that much either. I feel like I should, but I don’t, not really.” _Not anymore_ , she added internally. “It feels weird though, feeling without really feeling it, you know?”

It may have sounded vague, but to the brunette it was enough to understand. “I might have an idea, yes. Our time is up, I’m afraid. I have a bandit to find.” A teasing smirk graced her features, which the blonde easily returned.

“And I have a book to read. I’ll see you soon again, right?” The witch always left a book on execution days, today would be no exception, right?

The answer came a heartbeat too late.

“Soon.” She nodded, and vanished in her usual magical smoke, leaving Emma pondering over what had gone through the woman just now.

\------

Another victim of the Queen’s wrath had ended up in the cell next to her, barely half a day after Emma last saw her. The guy had looked awfully tortured, clearly having struggled on the way there, bleeding in various places. As expected, it hadn’t taken long before a healer came to take care of the worst of it, making sure he wouldn’t die before his execution, though no more than that.

That execution day was today, and the blonde couldn’t help to find herself relieved. The man had barely been able to do anything, pained groans and gritted teeth excluded. Whether she was relieved because she’d have her peace again, or because he would be freed from his misery, she didn’t know.

When four guards showed up that morning to pick up the prisoner instead of the usual two, the woman could hardly believe her eyes. Was that guy honestly so strong that even when he was near death, he’d need double the amount of escorts?

What hadn’t crossed her mind, and surprised her, was that two of them headed down to her cell. Her eyes widened, but frowned when she found her body didn’t _want_ to object. Internally she was panicking and ready to fight them off, not willing to die, but her body simply refused.

The Queen wanted this, so she obliged.

_Damn that curse._

Memories flooded her mind as she tried to figure out if she’d done something wrong, when a realization struck her; the Queen had mentioned letting her pick her own death, meaning she’d see her at least once more, possibly seeing her right then. Her body felt lighter upon that, calming her down instantly.

She saw the other two had proceeded to drag the man out of his cell, when her own was unlocked. They advanced on her, grabbing her arms to make sure that she wouldn’t be able to escape, but they allowed her to walk with them rather than dragging her, which she was grateful for as she wasn’t planning on going anywhere else. She’d see the brunette again and that was all that mattered.

Even if it meant her death.


End file.
